Mute
by Cute Little Foxy
Summary: Youko buys a new slave. I suck at short summaries. Better than it sounds. Please just click the story and read the summary real fast. I will warn you now that it is really dark and gory in future chapters. But this is a tragedy with a happy ending! . .
1. Chapter 1

**Um, anybody got a better idea for a title for this thing? Yes? No? Well, until someone gives me a new idea for a title, this thing will be called "Mute". The title name was given to me by Silver Spirit Fox because I couldn't think of anything . . .**

**Summary: Youko is lonely and needs someone to talk to who won't talk back too often (which probably leaves out most of the demons in Makai), so he turns to the slave trade in hopes of finding a good listener (or at the very least someone who will pretend to listen). His new slave turns out to become a very good friend. (Not that kind of friend!) My summary sucks, okay? Just read a little of it. (I fear that this first chapter kinda sucks a little, but I'm still fairly new to this. Sue me. I can't even think of a good title right now! Of course, it's almost one in the morning as am typing this . . .)**

**Warnings: It's an M rated fic, and it comes from the darker part of my mind. The darker parts of my mind usually focus on Kurama torture and bloody gore. You do the math. This story is rated M for many reasons, though . . . *sigh* Inari, I am boring . . . On the bright side, we'll get to see (what I think could be) some of Youko's true feelings! Oh, and there will definitely be OOCness.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own YYH. (Duh!)**

**Little Bit of Info: Alright, at times it will seem like Youko **_**really**_** likes his new slave, but, although it may seem like it, this story is not **_**meant**_** to be shonen ai/yaoi. Everything that Youko says and does that seems kind of odd is just his parental/fatherly instincts coming out. (Hey! Just because he's a legendary demon thief, that doesn't mean that he can't try to act like a father!) I know that this isn't like most M rated Kurama/Youko fics, but just give it a chance. Please? You don't have to read all of it, just give it a shot! (It'll get better later! Shuuichi is gonna get kidnapped! Ack! I gave away part of it!)**

**Little Bit More Info: I've given some of the characters some little quirks, and they are believable ones! (In other words, it's not something that could never happen in a million years.) For instance: Shuuichi (Kurama) can't swim. Youko has a bad habit of collecting useless shiny things. (Hey, animals are attracted to shiny objects. He's a FOX demon thief. Foxes are animals. Can you see my reasoning?) I know that this next one is a little stupid, but Youko is also slightly obsessed with neatness. (This one came from the fact that every time he appears, he's spotless. (Not so much after fights . . .) Even when we see a flashback when Kurama visits Yomi, Youko's clothes are **_**ALWAYS**_** clean. And he always shows up in basically the same thing. SO, he either has a closet full of the same outfit (which would be kinda weird) or he keeps himself clean.) If you don't like that I've given some of the characters these little quirks (Which I'm sure many of you have done in your heads plenty of times!), then you don't have to read my story. I'd rather have fewer readers/reviewers who actually like my story than I would a bunch of people who flamed it without reading it JUST BECAUSE I GAVE THE CHARACTERS A LITTLE BIT OF A PERSONALITY BOOST!!!!!**

**In other words: FLAMES ARE NOT WELCOME!!!!! IF YOU FLAME, YOU WILL BE IGNORED, YOUR REVIEW WILL BE DELETED, AND YOU WILL PROMPTLY BE BLOCKED FROM REVIEWING!!!!!!! YOU GET IT?!?!?!**

**Heh heh, sorry. I'm not in the best mood right now. Sleep deprivation and all that . . .**

**Another Little Bit of Info: Shuuichi thoughts tend to be kind of rambling and crazy, and he tends to eventually convince himself that people are going to hurt him, or worse. (His entire life has been hell! Can you blame him?) If you don't get this part don't feel bad. I doubt anybody will. You'll understand it eventually, though. I hope.**

**Yet Another Little Bit of Info (this is the last one, I promise): This chapter may be a little hard to understand at first because I will not be using Shuuichi's name until after he tells his name to Youko, which is somewhere near the middle or end of this chapter. (I'm not sure which because I'm not sure how long this chapter is. O.o)**

**Okay, I probably need to explain how to read this story, so here a key for the dialogue:**

"**blah blah" - Normal conversatoinal speaking.**

_**blah blah**_** - Thoughts.**

**/B-L-A-H * B-L-A-H./ Shuuichi "speaking" in sigh language. (I found after trying several different things that the little * between the words makes it easier to read. Also, his sentence will be punctuated normally for the benifit of the readers, though I'm not sure if there are actually signs for punctuation marks.)**

**Well, until I think of something more to say, on with the fic!**

* * *

**Mute**

**Chapter 1**

**Youko's tail twitched angrily as he glared down at the lizard demon before him, his booted foot tapping in aggravation. How hard could it be to find a decent slave? All he wanted was some to at the very least sit and pretend to pay attention to him when the rest of his gang wanted to count their spoils from a raid. Even the great Youko Kurama could get lonely . . . Couldn't he?**

**And this damnable lizard wouldn't listen to a word he said. (Which was how this whole mess got started in the first place! He needed someone to listen to him!)**

"**P-perhaps this one-" He pointed to a green- and blue-feathered youkai that was quite obviously a songbird.**

**Youko's amber eyes flashed. "Damn it, I told you I don't want a freaking songbird! I want somebody that will listen, not talk until my ears fall off!" He was tempted to start pulling his hair out. How hard was it to find a slave that **_**didn't**_** like to talk?**

**The lizard demon wrung his hands nervously. "Well, if that's what you want, I do have one slave that I know for sure won't speak, but . . ." He chewed at his lip.**

**Youko's ears perked up. "But what?"**

"**Well . . . He's not really much good for anything. He can't really do much . . . Maybe you should just come look at him."**

"**All right, then. Let's see him." **_**It's probably just some old man that's too ancient to talk in the first place. Just what I need**_**, he thought sarcastically.**

"**Yes, sir."**

**The lizard demon led Youko down a long hallway lined with horse stall-like cells. A mixture of humans and demons peeked curiously over the half-doors at the passing demons, smirking at how uncomfortable the ancient fox was obviously making their master.**

**The pair stopped in front of a solid metal door. The lizard youkai fumbled to get the key in the lock and get the door open. It hit the inside wall with an ominous **_**bang**_**. The musty smell of the damp room sent Youko's sensitive nose twitching uncontrollably. Uhg, what a horrible place. How could any creature live in this this disgusting place?**

**Bright light spilled over the figure huddled against the back wall of the tiny cell. Youko was surprised to find that it was not some decrepit creature as he had expected, but a young, very feminine-bodied teenage boy.**

**The child put up a thin hand to shield his eyes from the bright light, blinking and squinting his watering eyes as he tried to focus on the two beings before him.**

"**Th-this is him sir."**

**Youko strolled over and knelt down in front of the boy. The teen was obviously quite sick and malnourished. His arm was shaking where he held it near his face, and he couldn't even lift up his head. Youko felt a wave of pity wash over him at the sight of this sickly creature. "What's your name, boy?"**

**The boy started making strange motions with his hand, not looking up at the fox.**

**Youko grabbed the boy's wrist, ears laying back, thinking that the teen was insulting him. If this brat was going to make fun of him, then the kitsune had no pity for him. "What the hell are you doing?" Youko yelled, right in the boy's face. "Are you trying to insult me?" he growled, tightening his grip with each word.**

**The boy shook his head, still not meeting the fox's furious gold eyes. Pain was shooting up his arm from the vice-like grip on his wrist that threatened to crush the small bones. Tears started to pour down his dirty face, leaving streaks over his skin.**

**Youko suddenly realized that the boy was crying, but he was barely making a sound . . . He let go of the boy's wrist when he realized that he was bruising the child's pale skin, about to crush the fragile bones underneath. Why hadn't the boy yelled or asked him to let go? Was there something wrong with the young human after all?**

**Youko turned to glare at the lizard, amber eyes burning into the scaly youkai. "What's the matter with him? Is he trying to insult me, or is he just stupid?"**

"**N-neither, sir. He's a mute."**

**Youko raised an eyebrow at that. A mute? "He can't speak?"**

**The lizard shook his head. "No, he can't, sir. He's never been able to. And he's always been too weak to be much use for anything else. He can't cook to save his life, he's no good at cleaning, he clearly can't fight, and someone as weak as him is no good for breeding, so there's really no reason for me to keep him around for much longer," he said, trying to dissuade the old fox from making a pointless purchase. If this legendary thief was unsatisfied, it would no doubt come back on him. Sure, the young teen was good for renting out to demons for sex, but that was it, and the human usually ended up taking quite a bit of damage from his temporary masters. And most of the demons in these parts that were able to pay for him had already had the boy several times and were getting tired of him . . .**

**No use in keeping him around . . . Youko knew what that meant. The teen was going to be killed. No slave driver would keep a slave who couldn't do anything unless it would be to their own benefit (which was very rare and usually meant that thepoor creature was being used by merciless demons who wanted cheap sex . . .). They would only cost money to feed. Whatever weapon was used to kill them (or the ammunition) also usually cost a pretty penny (especially in this are of Makai which was famous for its weapons), which usually meant that the slave's owner just locked the slave up and forgot about them rather than wasting time and energy killing them. Which was probably why this boy was in this awful room in the first place. The lizard demon that currently owned him had probably gotten tired of providing for a useless slave and locked him in here to starve. That would certainly explain why the boy was so weak and undernourished . . . He'd been locked in here to die, but he was apparently too stubborn to do so . . . And now the scaly demon wanted rid of him immediately. Youko suddenly realized that the lizard was probably going to kill the child as soon as he left.**

**The teen seemed to understand that as well, for Youko suddenly found the boy's thin arms wrapped around his waist, clinging to him for dear life (literally).**

**This was it. He was going to die unless this fox bought him, and there was no chance of that happening. He was useless. The only time anyone had ever wanted him was when they wanted sex, and he doubted that that was what this old demon was here for. The lizard was going to kill him once the kitsune was gone . . . But he didn't want to die! Yes, his life was horrible, but at least he was still living! That meant that he might eventually be bought by someone who didn't just want to use him, right? It was a stupid thing to hope for, but it was something . . . He buried his face in the fox's chest, his entire frame heaving as he started to sob into the demon's white linen tunic. Damn it, he didn't want to die . . .**

**The old fox gently petted the trembling child's tangled hair, absently noting the hints of red under the layers of dirt and grime. "There, there. It's all right, little one. I won't let him hurt you," he whispered. "It'll all be okay. I promise."**

**The boy looked up at him, and Youko was struck by the beautiful emerald eyes staring up at his gold ones. The poor kid was obviously scared to death. Both he and Youko both knew that the lizard demon was going to kill him if the fox didn't buy him. Youko knew that he **_**had**_** to buy this child. He might have had a reputation for being cruel and heartless, and it was usually the truth about him, but he knew he wouldn't be able to live with himself knowing that because of him this innocent child had been killed, that he could have saved the boy.**

"**How much?"**

"**E-excuse me?" the startled lizard asked.**

"**How much do you want for him? Name your price." He felt the boy's arms tightened ever so slightly around his waist, as though he couldn't actually believe that this was happening.**

**The lizard demon was shocked. "Wh-what?"**

"**I'm buying him from you. How much do you want?"**

"**Sir, surely I can find someone better for you. This human is so useless. If you simply need someone for company, there are plenty of young neko here. Neko are always good com-"**

"**Damn it, I said I'm buying him!" Youko roared. "Is that really so hard to understand?! Now tell me how much you want for him!" His clawed hands dug into the back of the boy's shirt (if the shredded piece of cloth covering his torso could even be called a shirt). The boy made a soft sound in the back of his throat that was more like a quiet breath when Youko's claws pierced his skin. Youko instantly eased up on him, afraid of hurting the boy.**

"**Um, well . . ." The lizard demon thought for a moment, wondering how much the legendary fox was willing to pay for such a useless slave.**

"**Well?"**

**Um . . ."**

**Youko laid his ears back. Damn, this demon was stupid! He reached into his tunic, pulled out the tiny bag of gold he'd stashed there, and threw it at the demon's feet. "There. That should cover it."**

**The lizard youkai snatched up the bag, taking a few moments to count out the gold coins inside. Seven hundred and fifty . . . The lizard was only planning on asking for forty, fifty at the most . . . But he wasn't going to complain.**

**Youko tried to pull his new charge to his feet, only to have the boy fall back to the ground. The fox noticed then that the boy had heavy metal shackles around his ankles, connecting him to the wall, and that the thick metal had rubbed the underlying skin until it bled. Inari, how long had this poor boy been locked up in here?**

"**Hey, lizard, where's the key?"**

**The scaled demon looked up from admiring the gold. "Huh?"**

"**The key," Youko snapped. "For his shackles. Where is it?"**

"**Um . . . I'm not . . . sure . . ."**

**Youko's eyebrow twitched. Damned stupid lizard. "Well, where do you think it is?"**

"**Um . . ." The demon scratched his head.**

**Youko laid his ears back again. "Just forget it." Then he turned to the human boy. "Hold still, okay?"**

**The boy nodded.**

**Youko pulled his arm back, then brought his claws back down on the thin metal chains. He could pick the locks once they got back to his den. It was a good day's walk from here (at a demon's pace), probably more since he'd have to carry the boy. (He was cruel, it was true, but he wasn't so cruel that he would make this poor child walk when his ankles were blistered and bleeding like they were.) But surely the boy could bear to were them for one more day.**

**The boy looked up at him, eyes questioning.**

**Youko stroked the boy's thick hair away from his face. "I don't have the tools with me to pick the locks right now, and my claws can't cut through metal that thick. (*1.) Can you wear them for another day or so? It shouldn't be more than two at them most. Can you handle that?"**

**The boy nodded, gently rubbing at the raw skin around his ankles, tears shimmering in his emerald eyes.**

**Youko cupped the boy's cheek in his hand and wiped at the tears with the pad of his thumb, trying to sooth the child. "I know it hurts, but I've got some medicine back at my den that should help." He scooped the boy up and headed out the door, brushing past the preoccupied lizard demon. He kept talking as he walked down the hall and out of the building, keeping the boy pressed firmly against his chest. "Hey, after we get those shackles off, how does a hot bath sound? After you've healed some, of course. I don't even want to imagine what hot water in those raw wounds would feel like . . . Would you like that? The bath, I mean."**

**The boy nodded, a hint of a smile on his thin face.**

"**So . . . What exactly were you doing earlier? Those weird signs you were making with your hand?"**

**The boy made a series of the strange motions and signs, a questioning look on his innocent face.**

"**Um, yeah . . . That."**

**The boy made more of the signs.**

**Youko raised an eyebrow before it clicked. "Oh! I get it. You're talking to me, aren't you?"**

**The boy nodded again.**

"**Oh, okay. Can you teach me that? So I can understand you?"**

**He smiled and nodded.**

"**Can we start with just the alphabet? At least that way we'll have a basic way to communicate."**

**The boy nodded again and took hold of Youko's right hand, curling his fingers into a fist and laying the pad of his thumb against the side of his index finger.**

"**So we're starting now?"**

**He nodded.**

"**And I guess I'm to assume that this is 'A'?"**

**He smiled and nodded again.**

"**All right. What about 'B'?"**

**The boy shifted Youko's hand to make the sign for "B".**

* * *

**They continued on like that for the next several hours. Youko had finished learning the entire alphabet in the boy's strange hand signs by the time they stopped for the night.**

**Youko decided they should stop when they reached a rather large river. But the boy seemed unusually uneasy when Youko sat him down on a large rock and said that they both needed to rinse off.**

"**What's the matter? You shy or something?"**

**The boy didn't answer.**

**Youko raised an eyebrow. "Are you?"**

**The boy raised his hand to answer. /N-O-N-E * O-F * M-Y * P-R-E-V-I-O-U-S * M-A-S-T-E-R-S * U-N-D-E-R-S-T-O-O-D * T-H-A-T * T-H-I-S * I-S * H-O-W * I * S-P-E-A-K./**

"**So what happened?" Although he already had a pretty good idea . . .**

**/T-H-E-Y, * L-I-K-E * Y-O-U, * T-H-O-U-G-H-T * I * W-A-S * D-I-S-R-E-S-P-E-C-T-I-N-G * T-H-E-M. * T-H-E-Y* long pause * H-I-T * M-E./**

"**You mean they beat you." It wasn't a question, though Youko knew that the boy would still answer him.**

**The boy nodded solemnly.**

"**And I supposed that they left quite a few scars, didn't they?" The fox pulled his tunic off over his head, tossing it on the rock beside his new companion.**

**He nodded again, pulling his knees up to his chest.**

"**Well, if you don't wanna take a bath, then can you keep an eye on my clothes? I don't want someone, or something, to come up and steal them while my back is turned."**

**The boy nodded again.**

**Youko finished stripping and jumped into the water, yelping in surprise when the icy water bit into his skin. "Sweet Inari, this water is cold!"**

**The boy snorted in what Youko assumed was his way of laughing.**

""**So, kid, you haven't told me your name yet."**

**/S-H-U-U-I-C-H-I./**

"**Shuuichi?"**

**He nodded.**

"**That's . . . different."**

**/S-O * I-S * Y-O-U-K-O./**

**Youko chuckled. "Yeah, that's true." He shivered and wrapped his arms around his chest. "Jeez, I think my tail's gonna freeze off."**

**/B-E-T-T-E-R * N-O-T * S-T-A-Y * I-N * T-H-E-R-E * F-O-R * T-O-O * L-O-N-G * O-R * S-O-M-E-T-H-I-N-G * E-L-S-E * M-I-G-H-T * F-R-E-E-Z-E * O-F-F./**

"**Yeah, I'm only gonna rinse off. The water feels pretty good, though, even if it is cold. Why don't you try to soak your ankles? It might help. It can't hurt, can it?"**

**Shuuichi uncurled from his ball and lowered his bare feet into the water. He gasped and jerked them back out when the icy water hit the partially open wounds on his ankles, leaving a cold burning sensation in his bones.**

**Youko cringed at the pain on the boy's face. "So I take it that it didn't help, huh?"**

**The boy shook his head, wiping at the tears that had sprung to his eyes.**

**Youko waded over to him, laying a damp hand on the boy's bony shoulder. "I'm sorry, Shuuichi. I didn't think the water would hurt you." He hooked his fingers under the teen's chin and made him look up. "Are you okay?"**

**The boy sniffled and nodded.**

**Youko smiled and ruffled Shuuichi's thick hair. "All right then. Are you hungry?**

**The boy nodded vigorously.**

**Youko chuckled. "All right. Gimme a minute to get dressed and I'll get something ready, okay?"**

**The boy nodded, though he wasn't sure exactly what the strange fox planned on having them eat . . .**

**Youko smiled and picked up his clothes. He was starting to like Shuuichi. The boy was easy to talk to, and there was just something about him that made Youko . . . happy. And that was a very big deal to the fox thief. The only other person who ever made him happy was Kuronue, and that was usually during one of their admittedly asinine tricks on others (or on each other). And even the bat got annoying after a while . . .**

**Youko dressed quickly, clothes clinging annoyingly to his damp body, and moved back to Shuuichi, carefully scooping the slave boy into his arms bridal style. He wished the boy would have at least rinsed off some of the dirt and grime coating his skin and seemingly hopelessly tangled hair. Youko had a bit of a(n annoying) habit of wanting all his things to be clean and orderly. (Hence the reason why he spent a great deal of time in his personal den and relatively little time around the rest of his gang in the lair.) He also had a bad fascination/obsession with pretty or beautiful things, which led him to trying to keep himself from getting dirty or his pale skin from getting scratched during a fight. Yes, he was vain, and he knew it, but he was a fox demon for Inari's sake! It was in his blood to be vain, as was his obsession with beautiful (and sometimes shiny) objects. This boy would probably fit that description (if only Youko could just get him clean!). Youko had a feeling that, once cleaned up and healed, this boy would be more beautiful than the most skillfully crafted doll in all of Maki. Those deep emerald eyes of his already fit both the beautiful and shiny criteria by themselves. Once Youko got him cleaned up and into some descent clothes (in other words, anything but the tattered rags that were currently hanging around his thin body like old cobwebs), he'd probably have to beat the rest of his gang off the lad with a stick.**

**Youko was so caught up in his own thoughts, he didn't see the log in his path until he'd already tripped over it. Both he and Shuuichi went down, him landing hard on top of the boy and nearly crushing him. For a moment, he thought he'd heard Shuuichi scream in pain, but then he remembered that that was impossible. If the boy couldn't speak, he most certainly couldn't scream. But the child **_**was**_** crying. Why though? Yes, Youko had fallen on him, but for Inari's sake, he didn't weigh that much! So why was the boy-?**

**The pungent smell of blood and infection hit Youko's nose, sending it twitching again. His eyes immediately went to the boy's shackled ankles. Blood and a thick yellow pus were oozing from under the inch-thick metal.**

_**The jolt from the fall must have opened up the infected wounds**_**, Youko thought.**

**But if there was blood, then that meant that that disgusting infectious goop was spreading all throughout his already weakened body, and that wasn't good . . .**

**Youko struggled to get back onto his feet without dropping the boy, and then he took off running. They didn't have the time to stop and eat right now. He had to get this boy back to his den. He could treat the boy there, and then he'd worry about feeding the child. But first he had to make sure that the human didn't die from his infected wounds.**

**This day just kept getting better and better, didn't it?**

* * *

**Okie dokie, folks, there's chapter 1! I'm sorry if most of this seems like it could have been better written if a two-year-old had done it, but most of they typing/writing was done in the middle of a sleepless night. So I apologize right now for any screw-ups.**

**(*1.) Okay, before any of you ask, the reason why Youko could use his claws to cut through the chains and not the shackles themselves is because the chain links are only about a quarter of an inch thick, while the shackles themselves are over an inch thick. Okay?**

**I'm sorry if the descriptions of the boy's wounds made any of you sick. If it did, I don't suggest that you read any more of this story because it'll probably just get worse from here . . .**

**All right, I'm sure somebody out there noticed that I referred to Youko as "old" several times in this chapter. This is not because I consider him to be an old man. According to Absolute Anime, he about 3000 years old. Although it is stated once in the English version that he is only 300, later on when he is with Yomi, they make a reference to something that happened 1000 years ago, and Youko was most definitely alive. (I will not say what happened because that would be called a SPOILER, and would ruin part of the anime for those who have not seen it. . . . and I can't remember the details offhand.) So it makes sense that Youko would be 3000 instead of 300. They probably say he is 300 because of a mistranslation. Now, the reason I am calling him old is not because of his age. This is more to express that Youko is supposed to be more of a father-type figure to Shuuichi than to express his age. You also may have noticed that Youko thinks of Shuuichi as a "boy" or "child" more than a young man or a teenager. Again, this has to do with the father-figure reference.**

**Shuuichi's real age will not ever be told in this fic, but you will get an about age in the next chapter.**

**I'll try to be back soon with the next chapter, so if you liked this story (which I hope you did), then just hang tight. I'll try to get the next chapter out within a month (I'm sorry if that seems like a long time, but I have other fics I'm trying to work on so I can post them, as well as a little bit of a life, though not much of one.)**

**I know this is random, but would anybody like to read a fic about Youko becoming a vampire? If so, I may try to get more than the first two pages of the vampire fic I'm working on done. I really don't know where any of my fics are going yet, so please be patient. I am only a fox, and I can only work so fast.**

**So, until next time, laterz everybody! *waves like an idiot***


	2. Chapter 2

Hi, everybody! I'm back with Chapter 2 of Mute!

Okay, standard warnings and disclaimers apply.

This chapter will be a bit longer than the last one.

A quick note: I shared the original beginning of this chapter with Silver Spirit Fox, and she said she thought I needed to maybe have Youko running through the woods and his thoughts at the beginning, and I think she's right, so that's what I'm gonna try. The original beginning is what's after the first series of "~*~*~*~*~" thingies. I just thought I'd share that with you.

So, on with the fic!

* * *

Mute

Chapter 2

_Inari, what am I supposed to do?_

Youko's heart was racing, and it wasn't just because of the fact that he was running through the woods at a speed that would rival Ningenkai "cheetahs" (whatever the hell those were). The little human in his arm was getter sicker by the minute . . . If they didn't get back to his den soon, then . . . He clutched the human boy tighter against his chest. Shuuichi hadn't stirred at all in quite some time, and the old fox was really beginning to worry . . . What if the child died before he could help him? . . .

Youko shook his head. No, he wouldn't let that happen. All he had to do was get the boy to his den, get his wounds cleaned up, and get some food in him and everything would be fine, just fine. That was all he had to do. That was all he had to-

He narrowly avoided smacking face first into a low hanging tree branch.

_Focus, Youko. Getting yourself hurt won't help him._

The sudden jolt of Youko jumping out of the way of the tree branch jarred Shuuichi awake. Youko looked down at him just in time to see the boy's hand signs. /W-H-E-R-E * A-R-E * W-E? * W-H-A-T-S * G-O-I-N-G * O-N?/

"I'm taking you to my den so I can make you better."

There was still a great deal of distress on the child's face.

"What's wrong, Shuuichi?" He almost hit another branch. Good grief, what was wrong with him today?

/I-T * H-U-R-T-S./

"I know it does. Just hold tight for a little while longer, okay? We're almost there." And by the smell of it, Kuronue was waiting for him. Good. The bat could help him treat the boy.

Or at he would if he knew what was good for him, anyway. Youko was not in a good mood right now, and he doubted the bat would want to cross him right now . . .

* * *

Kuronue's eyebrow twitched. When was Youko going to come back? There was nothing to do, and he was bored. It was never any fun around here without Youko randomly dropping in all the time.

A breeze suddenly picked up, and the bat caught a whiff of Youko's scent on the light wind. He could hear leaves rustling further back in the forest, getting closer and closer every second.

What in the world could have the old fox in such a hurry?

Youko suddenly blew by him in a streak of white, silver, and red, ducking into his nearby den.

"What the hell?" Kuronue readjusted his hat and ducked into the den's hidden entrance as well. "Hey, Youko!" he called, spying the fox near the end of the long tunnel. Wow, the fox was fast. "What's-?"

"I'm kind of busy right now, Kuronue," came the reply.

Kuronue frowned and followed him. The fox seemed to be carrying something very large, about the size and shape of a humanoid creature. Good grief, what had Youko gotten himself into now? Knowing the old fox, he'd probably swiped some princess, or queen, or some other royal woman that would just turn out to be more of a pain in the ass than she was worth . . . (That seemed to happen to him a lot . . .)

Youko disappeared behind a wall of plants, and Kuronue had to speed up in order o catch him.

Kuronue passed through the wall of leaves and vines in time to see Youko disappear into another room. He'd left the creature he'd been carrying on his bed (Why the fox had put his bed in the front room of his home, Kuronue would never understand.), tucked under a thick pile of blankets. Kuronue strolled over and lifted the blankets, revealing the grime-covered human underneath.

_Okay_ . . .

When the boy started to stir from the chilly underground air, Kuronue replaced the blankets and pulled a chair over to the bed to wait for Youko. The fox reappeared a few minutes later with his lock picking set.

"Hey, Youko, who is this kid?"

Youko uncovered the boy's feet. "A slave boy named Shuuichi," he said, as though that explained everything.

Kuronue frowned at the thick shackles around the boy's thin ankles. The metal had rubbed the skin until it bled, and there was obviously a bad infection set in. Jeez, why would Youko buy this kid? It was pretty obvious the kid was sick, so why had Youko wasted his money on him?

Kuronue?"

The fox's voice jolted him out of his thoughts. "Hunh?"

"Can you do me a couple of favors?"

"Uh, sure, what?"

He fiddled with the lock on one of the shackles. "Get some water boiling, but let it cool before you bring it. Bring me a bottle of liquor, doesn't matter what kind, a couple of clean rags, my chest with the herbs, and some rolls of bandages." The heavy chunk of metal hit the ground between his feet, and he moved on to the second one.

_Anything else you'd like, your highness? Jeez, he is such a pain._ "Yeah, sure." He got up ad went to go find everything.

Youko had the second shackle off in half the time it had taken him to unlock the first. Shuuichi whimpered and drew his legs up under the blankets when the cold, damp underground air hit his torn skin. Youko got up and went to sit on the bed beside the boy who was currently shivering under the heavy blankets. He knew the poor child was very sick and in pain. He wanted to help, but besides putting some medicine on the boy's injuries and bandaging him up, what could he do? Yes, his instincts were telling him to take care of this boy, but a kitsune's methods of taking care of caring for someone were often considered a little bit . . . strange. Possibly even over affectionate. But the poor kid needed _some_ kind of affection from _someone_. A demon fox thief with a bad habit of collecting useless shiny things would just have to do.

Kuronue was back then with Youko's herb chest, the rolls of bandages, an armload of towels, and a bottle of cheap Makai liquor that was more alcohol than flavor. "Here. I brought some extra towels, too. I figured that this would probably make a pretty big mess." He handed everything to Youko. "I'll go get the water. It ought to be cooled by now."

Youko just nodded, petting the boy's hair where his head poked out from underneath the blankets and cringing at just how _filthy_ it was. Uhg. First chance he got, he _had_ to get this boy clean. He was going to go crazy otherwise.

The unfamiliar feeling of fingers stroking through his hair stirred Shuuichi out of his fevered sleep. His whole body felt too hot. His ankles burned. His muscles ached. He just felt horrible in general. And the hand in his hair, now picking at knots, was getting _very_ annoying . . .

Shuuichi made a very strange noise through his nose and jerked his head away from Youko's hand. Okay, apparently he'd annoyed the boy. He hadn't meant to. He'd just started picking at the knot's in the boy's hair and . . . Uhg. He had to break himself of his stupid nitpicking habits.

Kuronue was back then with the pot of cooled water. "Alright, I think that's everything."

"Thank you, Kuronue." He stood again and moved back to his place at the foot of the bed. Oh boy, he was not looking forward to this . . . "Kuronue, I need you to help me hold him down."

Those last three words were what finally make Shuuichi jolt away. He tried to sit up. The words "hold him down" had never been good for him. If these two demons were planning on doing something to him, he would prefer to know what. Although, unfortunately, he had a pretty good idea of what they had in store for him, and the very thought of it terrified him.

A large hand shoved him back down onto the bed with enough force to knock the wing from his lungs.

"For, Inari's sake, Kuronue, be a little gentler with him! He's been through hell as it is, and this won't exactly be very pleasent for him."

Wouldn't be very pleasent? Oh no . . .

He raised his shaking hand, immediately catching Youko's attention, and signed, /W-H-A-T * A-R-E * Y-O-U * G-O-I-N-G * T-O * D-O * T-O * M-E?/

Youko laid a gentle hand on the boy's leg. The poor kid . . . He was trembling so badly that he could barely make his hand signs. "I need to clean the raw places on your ankles. I know the alcohol is going to hurt, and I need Kuronue to hold you still so you don't kick my head off."

/O-K-A-Y./ Shuuichi was still scared, but he didn't think Youko would hurt him . . . What choice did he have but to lay down and let the two demons do . . . whatever it was they planned to do to him anyway? He couldn't get away from them, and even if he could somehow manage to stand being on his feet, these demons could no doubt catch him and make it so that he couldn't run away . . . He'd had a friend who tried to run away once . . . The man had ended up with two broken legs for his troubles . . . Shuuichi decided that it could maybe be in his best interests to let these demons do what they pleased . . . Unless they just wanted to use him as their "toy". Most of his previous masters had bought him simply to use as a sex toy, and none of them were ever gentle with him. One of his previous masters had even managed to fracture his spine, and another had cracked his pelvis. And all of his masters before had been either humans or very low Class-D demons! And these two men were obviously NOT weak demons . . . They would probably kill him if they . . . Oh, no no no no no!

When Youko reached under the blanket to find his foot, Shuuichi kicked the fox's hand away with enough force to dislocate two of his fingers. Youko jerked his hand back and held it against his chest, his ears laying back and a whine forming n the back of his throat. Shuuichi scrambled away from him, trying to get down off the bed. He'd just reached the edge and was about to slip down when a strong hand wrapped itself in his hair and jerked him back, ripping part of his hair from its roots.

"Hey, you little brat! What the hell is wrong with you?!"

Shuuichi found himself staring into the bat demon's (Kuronue, wasn't it?) furious indigo blue eyes.

"You little bastard! We're trying to help you, dumbass!" He shook the human boy, dislodging more of his hair from his scalp. "What the hell are you thinking?!"

"Kuronue!"

The bat flinched at his friend's harsh tone. "What?"

"Put him down." He rubbed his hand, trying to relocate his fingers. Wow, the boy could kick hard.

"But-"

"Put. Him. Down." The last word was punctuated by the pop of his fingers sliding back into place.

"But, Youko, he-"

"He's scared. He's just trying to protect himself, that's all." Youko slowly massaged his aching hand. Damn, the boy was stronger than he looked . . .

Kuronue released his vice grip, and Shuuichi dropped back onto the bed. He immediately started crawling toward the foot of the bed where Youko was sitting with this arms open for the boy. Of the two demons present, Youko really did seem least likely to hurt him . . . Even if he _had _just injured the old fox.

Youko let the boy tuck himself up against his chest before wrapping his arms around the child. Poor Shuuichi . . . This whole mess had to be hard on him. He was already hurt and sick, and now he was half-scared out of his mind. And now the poor kid was shaking again . . .

It took Youko a minute to realize that Shuuichi was crying. He just wasn't used to seeing someone cry without hearing all the noise. When he looked up to see Kuronue's reaction, the bat was even more surprised than he was . . . Right, Kuronue didn't know the boy was mute. He mentally smacked himself on the forehead.

_Duh, Youko. You moron, where did you leave your brain today?_

"He can't speak," the fox said, as though that, again, said everything.

"Whatever. That still doesn't give him any right to kick you. If you bought him, then you own him. He should have more respect for you."

Youko started petting the boy's hair, again thinking just how badly he wished he could just drop the kid into a tub of hot water and get him clean. Sighing, he said, "Kuronue, the poor kid's probably been bought and sold as a sex toy so many times that he doesn't trust _anyone_. We probably scared the living hell out of him."

"But you told him we're just gonna clean his wounds! When did we do anything that would make him think-?"

"Try to think about it from his point of view, Kuronue. He's been hurt and abused his entire life, beaten and probably even raped who knows how many times, and he's probably just reached his breeding age (*1.) within the last year or so."

Shuuichi had been curling closer and closer to Youko as he spoke. The old fox had hit every aspect of his life right on the nose. He wasn't sure how much more of that abusive life he could have taken . . .

But . . . right now, he felt safe. Just listening to the fox speak on his behalf, he was fairly certain that the old kitsune would take care of him and not let anyone hurt him, that he'd keep him safe.

Kuronue looked at the boy pitifully. Youko was right. The child (Shuuichi was his name, wasn't it?) was just barely what a slave trader would consider to be of "breeding age". So if Youko was right about the child's past (and he was usually right about most things) then that meant . . . Gods, didn't people nowadays have any morals _at all_?! And he'd yelled at the boy, and hurt him, and . . . Gods, he felt so guilty . . . He had to look away from the child for a moment before he could work up the nerve to speak.

"Shuuichi?"

The boy flinched, but looked up at the bat anyway. He was fairly certain that Youko wouldn't let the other youkai hurt him.

Kuronue's heart almost melted when he met the slave boy's liquid emerald eyes. Gods, how could anyone stand to hurt this child? He shifted uncomfortably under the boy's gaze. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you or scare you. I just . . ." He sighed. That wasn't an apology! Uhg . . .

Shuuichi smiled at him. It wasn't the best apology in the world, but the bat _was_ trying.

Kuronue smiled back. The boy seemed to understand that apologizing wasn't really something he was good at . . .

Youko broke in then, remembering just how sick his new little human was. "Shuuichi, I need to treat you before you get any worse."

/O-K-A-Y./

Youko laid the child back down on the bed, truly dreading what he was going to have to do now . . .

/Y-O-U-K-O?/

"Yes?"

/T-H-A-N-K * Y-O-U * F-O-R * S-A-V-I-N-G * M-E. * I * W-O-U-L-D * B-E * D-E-A-D * I-F * Y-O-U * H-A-D * N-O-T * B-O-U-G-H-T * M-E./

"Don't thank me yet, kiddo. This is still gonna be total hell for you."

/I * K-N-O-W * I-T * W-I-L-L * B-E./

_Tell me about it_, Kuronue thought. He sat on the bed and laid a hand on the boy's chest to hold him down. He figured that Youko could probably manage to keep the boy's legs relatively still.

Youko laid a towel over his legs before pulling Shuuichi's right foot into his lap and grabbing the bottle of liquor and a small cloth. The smell of infection in the boy's wounds was so strong that Youko nearly choked. The skin on the boy's ankles was either bloody and oozing infection, or swollen and bright red. The poor kid . . . How could anyone stand this kind of injury? It had to be painful for him. Youko couldn't think of anyone (himself included) who wouldn't be writhing in agony from something like this . . .

But he couldn't dwell on that right now. He had to make sure the boy didn't get any sicker.

Youko wetted the cloth with the cheap liquor and gently touched it to the boy's wound.

His ears laid back at the scream that suddenly filled his head. He opened one clenched eyelid to look at Shuuichi. The boy was supposed to be mute. How could he-?

But Shuuichi's mouth was closed, save for the fact that he was biting his lower lip so hard it was bleeding. Youko grabbed one of the smaller towels and threw it at Kuronue, nodding at the boy's mouth.

Kuronue took the hint, rolling up the towel and placing it in the boy's mouth like a gag.

Shuuichi twisted and jerked the entire time Youko was trying to clean his right ankle. He'd occasionally gasp or hiss when the alcohol touched an exposed raw nerve. Tears were leaving streaks through the dirt on his face.

Youko tried to tune out the boy's pained sound and focus on disinfecting his wounds, but that was not exactly easy. He knew he was hurting the boy, and he didn't like it . . .

Shuuichi's struggles suddenly stopped. Youko's eyes immediately shot to the boy's face. The young teen's head was lolled to one side, his emerald eyes closed.

Youko's heart missed a beat. "Shuuichi?" Even he could hear the panic in his voice.

"Don't worry, Youko. He's still breathing. He just passed out. I guess the pain on top of everything else was too much for him."

Youko just nodded and went back to his work. At least if Shuuichi was unconscious he wouldn't be in pain . . .

After Youko'd thoroughly cleaned the boy's right ankle and rinsed out the remaining liquor from the wound with the cooled water, he moved on to the boy's other ankle, leaving the wound exposed to his den's cool air in hopes that it would soothe some of the pain. (AN: Okay, has Youko not been paying any attention _AT_ _ALL_? Haven't we already established that the cold _HURTS_ Shuuichi's injuries? *sigh*)

* * *

Shuuichi didn't stir again until long after Youko had finished bandaging his ankles and tucked the thick blankets in around him, trying to keep the cold chill off the sick child.

Shuuichi, however, was very uncomfortable. His body felt too hot. He started to squirm, trying to get out from under the heavy weight (the blankets) covering him.

Youko looked up from his chair when he saw the blankets moving. "Shuuichi?" He got up to stand over the boy. "Shuuichi, what's wrong?"

Shuuichi slowly opened his eyes, finding Youko hovering over him. He pulled his right hand from under the blankets.

"Shuuichi?"

/T-O-O * H-O-T./

"Okay, just hang on a second." He pulled off five or six of the blankets (AN: Well, he wasn't exactly counting them.) and pulled the rest back, away from the boy's chest. "Better?"

He nodded, his eyes drifting closed again.

Youko brushed the boy's sweaty hair away from his face. Jeez, the poor kid was burning up . . . He had to start getting some water and food into this boy soon, before his body completely gave out on him.

"Kuronue?" he called.

The bat appeared from behind one of the plant "doors". "Yeah? Whatcha need?"

"I need you to keep an eye on him for me."

"Why?"

"I have to get something ready that he can actually eat. He's going to die without food of some kind in his body to help him get better." (AN: Youko says "that he can actually eat" because Shuuichi hasn't had food for a long time. If you've ever been sick and not eaten much for a few days, you know as well as I do that it's hard to eat some things because the make you feel or get sick.)

Kuronue reluctantly agreed and sat down in the chair beside the bed. Why was Youko so obsessed with this kid? It was pretty obvious that the twerp wasn't much use for anything. Why did Youko even want this boy? He was probably going to cost more to make better than Youko had paid to buy him. (AN: Yeah. If only he knew, hunh?)

_Jeez. That fox sure is a pain . . ._

Kuronue propped his feet up on the bed and leaned back in the chair. He might as well catch some sleep for a few minutes . . .

(An: Okay, Kuronue officially SUCKS at taking care of kids!)

* * *

When Youko came back in awhile later and saw Kuronue sleeping when he'd been told to keep an eye on Shuuichi, needless to say, he was not happy.

"Kuronue!"

The bat jolted awake, almost falling out of his chair. "Youko! I- What are you wearing?" He looked the fox up and down, taking in the light purple cloth covering his front and the tray of food in his hands. "You look like some warlord's maid!"

Youko frowned. "It's called an apron, smartass I didn't want to get food all over my clothes."

Kuronue snickered. "I'm sorry, miss, I didn't mean to offend you."

Youko's eyebrow twitched. "Bastard."

"My, my. Such coarse language for a young lady."

"Call me a woman one more time and you get this hot soup right in your eyes."

"Okay, okay, point taken. Killjoy."

"And anyway, you were supposed to be watching Shuuichi, not sleeping. What do you have to say for yourself?"

"Uh . . ."

"Never mind," Youko growled. He was really beginning to HATE the word "uh" . . .

"What's wrong with you?"

Youko ignored him, instead sitting down on the bed beside the sleeping human. He saw Kuronue leave the den from the corner of his eye. "Shuuichi? I've got some food for you."

The boy shook his head. /N-O * F-O-O-D./

"C'mon, kiddo, you've gotta eat something."

/N-O. * F-E-E-L * S-I-C-K./

"You are sick, Shuuichi. That's why you have to eat. You're only going to get sicker if you don't eat." He picked up the glass off the tray. "At least drink something. You're dehydrated. You need to get some fluids back into your body."

/T-O-O * T-I-R-E-D./

"Shuuichi," Youko said sternly. "You need to drink something. Now."

Shuuichi finally looked up at him, emerald eyes looking tired and weary. /S-L-E-E-P-Y./

"I know you're sleepy, Shuuichi. If you'll drink this, I'll let you go back to sleep. Deal?"

Shuuichi tried to think rationally. (An: His brain is overheated, okay? He can't think.) He just wanted to sleep. But Youko was telling him he needed to drink something . . . Why did he have to drink something? Why couldn't he just sleep?

Youko slid an arm under Shuuichi, lifting him into a sitting position. He put the cup to the semiconscious boy's lips and tipped it slightly, trying to trickle some of the liquid into his mouth. Most of it dribbled down the child's chin. Youko sighed. "Come on, Shuuichi. Just a few sips. Please?"

Shuuichi finally took a small sip of the liquid, surprised to find that it wasn't the stale, dusty-tasting water that he was usually given, and that instead it was very sweet . . . He immediately spat it back out and tried to push Youko away. The last time somebody had given him something sweet to drink, he'd passed out and . . . Youko said he wasn't going to hurt him, but- Why was he-

"Shuuichi! Shuuichi, what's wrong?" He tried to pin the struggling teen down. "Shuuichi, please, stop. Tell me what's wrong." He forced the boy's shoulders down into the mattress. "Shuuichi! Enough!"

He stilled, tears running down his face.

"Good. Now just tell me what's wrong. Why'd you start fighting all of a sudden?"

/Y-O-/ He had to stop and wait a moment for his hand to stop shaking before he could finish. /Y-O-U-R-E * G-O-I-N-G * T-O * H-U-R-T * M-E./

"What?! Shuuichi, I'm not going to hurt you." He shook his head. "Why would you even think that?"

/D-R-I-N-K./ He couldn't stop crying long enough to tell the fox anything else.

"Drink? What do you mean? Was something wrong with your drink?"

The boy tried to answer, but he was shaking so badly that Youko could barely make out most of the letters, though he did catch a few words.

/D-R-I-N-K./ * /S-W-E-E-T./ * /B-A-D./ * /H-U-R-T./

"Shuuichi, please, just calm down. You're not making any sense. Come on, kiddo, what's wrong?"

The very few of the boy's words that Youko managed to catch still didn't make much sense.

/M-A-N./ * /S-W-E-E-T * D-R-I-N-K./ * /H-U-R-T * M-E./

"Shuuichi, please, I need you to calm down. Okay? Just calm down. Everything's all right."

Shuuichi tossed his head and squirmed, under the fox's grip, desperately trying to get loose. He didn't like people's hands on him Why did people always have to touch him?! Why couldn't they just leave him alone?!

"Shuuichi?"

Youko though the boy signed /L-E-T * G-O./ but he wasn't sure. It seemed like a safe bet, though . . .

"Okay, okay." He finally released his grip on the struggling teen. "There. Now c'mon, kiddo, tell me what's wrong."

Again, Youko only caught small bits of the boy's incoherent answer.

/M-A-N./ * /D-R-I-N-K./ * /S-W-E-E-T./ * /S-L-E-E-P./ * /H-U-R-T./

Youko's ears laid back as he tried to make sense of the boy's irrational sentences. All right, it was WAY to late in the day for him to be thinking this hard! "Okay . . . So . . . A man gave you something sweet to drink . . . that made you fall asleep . . . and then that man hurt you . . ."

He nodded, barely able to breather through his crying.

"Shuuichi, it's just fruit juice. That's all."

/ F-R-U-I-T * J-U-I-C-E?/

"Mm-hm." He took a small sip from the glass. "See? It won't hurt you." He paused before frowning down into the cup. "You spit in this, didn't you?"

Shuuichi smiled sheepishly. (AN: Now that's a mouthful!)

Youko sat the cup back down and picked up the bowl of soup and the spoon. "Can you try to eat some of this?"

Shuuichi stared at him in a pleading manner. He didn't want to eat. His stomach felt horrible. He just wanted to sleep.

"Shuuichi, you have to eat something before you sleep so your body will have energy to heal itself while you rest." He propped some pillows behind the boy's back to keep him sitting up and then offered him a spoonful of the broth. "Come on now. Open up."

Shuuichi barely parted his lips, giving Youko just enough room to slip the spoon into his mouth. The broth would have tasted bland to most people, but too Shuuichi, who had never actually had descent food in his life, it was quite possibly the most delicious thing he'd ever tasted. He let Youko continue feeding him until he felt too full to eat any more and turned his head away.

Youko really wished that Shuuichi would have eaten more . . . The bowl was still over half full . . . But it was only to be expected, he supposed. The child had probably never been given enough food to fill his belly in his entire life, so of course he didn't eat much . . . He unpiled the blankets and let the human boy lie back down. He had told the teen that he would let him sleep if he ate, and he couldn't really go back on his word . . .

Shuuichi curled up on his side under the blankets. He was so tired . . . Maybe now that he'd eaten something, Youko would let him sleep . . . He felt the blankets being pulled up and tucked in around him, and then he felt the fox's long fingers in his hair again. It was actually kind of soothing this time . . . His eyes drifted closed and after a few minutes, he was sound asleep.

* * *

So what do you think? Is it good, is it bad, did I misspell anything? Well?

(*1.) Okay, I don't know WHERE I got the term "breeding age" from (it just kinda popped into my head), but it basically means that the person has hit puberty . . . So Shuuichi is still VERY young. Again, no specific age, but definitely early to mid teens. (As Kuronue put, don't people have any morals at all?)

Please review. I don't CARE what you say anymore. Just say "Hi!" if you want . . . But dang it, people, review already! Don't make me unleash Youko on you! . . . No, wait, some of you would probably like that . . .

Sorry. It's midnight, and me needs sleepy time . . .

The next chapter might be a little while . . . I still have to write it. Heh heh . . . *sweatdrop*

Has anybody noticed that even when he starts out thinking rationally, Shuuichi tends to convince himself that people are trying to hurt him? Or that the more you read (of his thoughts), the more rambling and incoherrent everything is? At least I think that this is so, but I don't know about the rest of you . . .

Well, until next time, bye!


	3. Chapter 3

Hi! I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!

Sorry for the wait on this . . .

Standard disclaimers apply, blah blah blah . . .

Warnings: It's an M rated fic, people. Do the math.

Um, you might wanna read the last paragraph of the last chapter before you read this. This chapter pretty much picks up where the last chapter left off.

Most of the chapters after this are gonna kinda be fillers . . . But they will need to be in here to push the story to the rest of the main plotline. Don't worry, though, because they shouldn't be too boring. Maybe only mildly boring, but kinda funny . . . This story is gonna need something kinda funny before I get to the rest of the plot . . . (It's a tragedy people. Somebody is gonna die. And most likely not in a pleasent way, either.)

Okie dokie, here's Chapter 3 of Mute!

* * *

Mute

Chapter 3

Shuuichi awoke several hours later to Youko shaking his shoulder and telling him he had to drink some more. Uhg. Why couldn't the fox just leave him alone and let him sleep?

He almost choked on the sweet liquid be was being given, bad memories flooding back to him . . . Until he remembered what Youko had said. It was only fruit juice . . . Only fruit juice . . . It wouldn't hurt him . . . And it was actually very good . . . Now he started to realize just how thirsty he really was.

Youko smiled when Shuuichi started gulping down the cold juice. His body needed the nutrients as much as it needed the fluid itself. At least the boy seemed to have gotten over his fear of sweet liquids . . . But if he kept up like this, he'd make himself sick.

"Shuuichi." He pulled the cup away. "Shuuichi, slow down."

Shuuichi grabbed for the glass. Why was Youko taking his drink away? Had he done something wrong?

Youko held the cup away from him. "You need to slow down. You're stomach isn't used to having anything in it. You'll make yourself sick if you drink too much too fast."

/B-U-T-/

"Just sip it. Youko can always have more if you're still thirsty afterwards."

/I * C-A-N?/

He nodded. "Mm-hm."

Shuuichi reached for glass again, and this time Youko let the boy have it. Shuuichi happily sipped the sweet juice, thankful to finally have something to drink after so long.

After the boy had finished his juice, Youko asked, "Shuuichi, would it be all right if I cleaned you up a little bit?"

Shuuichi frowned. /S-T-I-L-L * T-I-R-E-D./

"I know you are, but you'll rest better if you're clean."

Now Shuuichi was looking at him suspiciously. /W-H-A-T * A-R-E * Y-O-U * G-O-I-N-G * T-O D-O?/

"Just use some warm water and a cloth to wipe off some of the dirt. It's nothing that will hurt, I promise."

Shuuichi bit his lip for a moment. He was still very afraid of the old fox . . . Youko could easily overpower him if he wanted to . . . He'd never be able to stop the fox from doing whatever he wanted.

"Shuuichi? What's wrong?"

/Y-O-U-/ He paused for a moment. /Y-O-U * W-O-N-T * H-U-R-T * M-E, W-I-L-L * Y-O-U?/

Youko pushed Shuuichi's hair back off his face. The boy looked like he was scared half to death. He smiled reassuringly at the human. "Of course not, kiddo."

/O-K-A-Y * T-H-E-N./ He held up the glass and cocked his head, giving Youko a questioning look? /M-O-R-E?/

Youko smiled again. "Sure thing." He took the glass and stood up. "Would you take some medicine if I bring it to you?"

M-E-D-/ He paused, looking totally bewildered. /W-H-A-T?/

"Don't you know what medicine is?"

He shook his head.

_Sweet Inari_, Youko thought. _Hasn't anyone even bothered to TRY to treat this boy nicely? Oh, duh, Youko. That's a stupid question._ (AN: Um, has Youko missed everything that's been said about Shuuichi's past so far?)

"Well, medicine is something you take when you're sick that will help you get better faster."

/O-H. * A-L-L * R-I-G-H-T./

* * *

Shuuichi coughed and spat out the foul-tasting liquid in his mouth. /T-H-I-S * T-A-S-T-E-S * T-E-R-R-I-B-L-E./

Youko scratched at his temple nervously. "Well . . . Medicine isn't supposed to taste good."

/A-N-D * Y-O-U * C-O-U-L-D-N-T * H-A-V-E * S-A-I-D * T-H-A-T * B-E-F-O-R-E?/

"Sorry. But they say that the worse medicine tastes, the better it works."

/W-H-O * I-S * T-H-I-S * "T-H-E-Y"? * I * W-A-N-T * T-O * M-E-E-T * T-H-E-M./ (AN: He's doing little air quotes around "they". Just thought you should know.)

Youko smiled and ruffled the boy's hair. "Please just drink your medicine."

/B-U-T-/

"No, buts, Shuuichi. Either drink your medicine of your own free will, or I'll get a funnel and you'll drink it anyway." He tapped the boy on the end of his nose. "Now which is it going to be, kiddo?"

Shuuichi looked at him pleadingly. /B-U-T * I-T * T-A-S-T-E-S * H-O-R-R-I-B-L-E./

"I know. Just hold your nose and gulp it down. That'll make it easier."

Shuuichi frowned down at the cup again before pinching his nose and downing the entire thing.

Youko had to smile at the face the boy made. (An: I'll leave that look on his face up to your imagination.) ""Here." He handed the boy another cup of juice.

Shuuichi gulped down the juice, thankful it was washing the awful taste out of his mouth, while Youko started pulling the scraps of cloth off the boy's body. There was no way they could salvage the boy's clothes, but he was fairly certain that he could find something for the child to wear. (AN: Um, Youko keeps EVERYTHING he steals, and he only steals things that are, well, pretty or shiny. Inari help Shuuichi if Youko is the one picking out his clothes . . .)

Shuuichi grabbed one of the fox's wrists, fear shining bright in his green eyes. /W-H-A-T * A-R-E * Y-O-U * D-O-I-N-G?/

"There's no point in you wearing these rags. I've got clothes you can wear. And I have to undress you to clean you up anyway."

Shuuichi looked down at the "clothes" he was wearing, or at least what was left of them, which, as Youko had said, wasn't much more than rags. He wasn't even sure which of his masters had given him these, it had been such a long time ago. Hell, he was lucky they'd lasted this long . . .

But . . . How could he be sure that the fox would give him something to wear? A few of his previous masters had pulled the same trick, and then left him shivering and naked until they're decided what to do with him . . . And what's they'd decided on hadn't been pleasent any of the times it had happened. But would Youko really . . . ? Youko was very well known for his sexual appetite as well as his thieving skills . . . What if he-?

_N-no . . . He can't . . ._

Shuuichi struck the fox's hands away from him, dumping the cup of juice in his hands over both of them in the process. He couldn't let the fox do this!

Inari, what the hell was wrong with the boy now? Youko grabbed the boy's arms in an attempt to hold him still, and earned quite a vicious slap across his face in return. Okay, now THAT pissed him off.

"Shuuichi!" he snapped, giving the boy one sharp shake. "Enough!"

Shuuichi's entire body went rigid, terrified of just what Youko would do to him. He'd struck the once already. There was no way it would be allowed a second time . . . Youko lowered him back onto the bed. Shuuichi squeezed his eyes shut, preparing for whatever Youko would do to him . . .

Several minutes passed, though they seemed like an eternity to Shuuichi. When nothing happened, he dared to open one eye to find . . .

That Youko was gone.

Shuuichi jolted upright, looking around frantically for any sign of the fox. Had Youko simply . . . left? Was the demon just going to abandon him? Was that his punishment for striking the fox? Being left all alone, possibly to starve (again) and die? He looked around again. There didn't seem to be anyone or anything that would stop him from leaving . . . other than his bandaged ankles. Would he be able to bear standing on them long enough to get away from this place?

He swung his legs over the side of the bed and eased his weight down onto his feet. Everything seemed to be going all right so far . . .

Until he tried to stand and take a step.

Somehow, he tripped, hitting the ground with enough force to stun him out of any pain he might have felt. Actually, he felt kinda funny right now . . . like his head was full of cotton or something. He was supposed to be running away . . . But he just felt like lying there. He was really too tired and dizzy to do anything else . . .

* * *

When Youko reappeared only a moment later from one of the other rooms and saw that Shuuichi was missing, he immediately went into red alert mode.

Okay, somebody couldn't possibly have gotten in without him sensing him or her, so the boy couldn't have been kidnapped. Could he? Bu the boy couldn't possibly have run away either. Not only would his injured ankles have prevented him from walking, but the medicine he'd been given would have made him so drowsy that he wouldn't even be able to hold his head up. So where could he possible-?

Well, the fact that half the blankets had been pulled to the floor on the other side of the bed might explain things . . .

He hurried across the room and around to the other side of the bed, depositing the bundle of cloth in his arms on the bed as he went. He discovered Shuuichi sprawled on the floor with the blankets tangled around is legs (AN: He tripped over something, remember?), blinking slowly, almost drunkenly, as he tried to focus on something that didn't seem to be there . . .

"Shuuichi?"

The boy's head rolled to the side until the now-hazy green eyes stared up at him. After a moment, recognition seemed to set in, a lop-sided smile spread across the child's face, and he started giggling through his nose.

"Um, Shuuichi? Are you okay?"

The teen made a move to raise up on his elbows, and ended up falling in the process. Youko caught him before his head hit the ground, but he was beginning to wonder if maybe the human hadn't already hit his head on something. The boy was acting very strangely . . .

Youko lifted him back onto the bed and tucked the blankets in tightly around his chest and legs, hoping to keep the boy from trying to run off again. Shuuichi continued to smile at and occasionally point and do his giggling/snorting laugh at something that Youko still couldn't see. All the while, the old fox continued to wonder just what the hell was going on. There didn't seem to be any signs that the boy had hit his head, no scrapes or bruises. But his eyes were dilated, so maybe he had . . . (AN: Peoples' eyes dilate when they have a concussion.)

Maybe the boy's medicine had something to do with his strange actions. It was supposed to make him drowsy . . . But he wasn't acting drowsy, he was acting . . .

Youko stood up quickly, running to his bookshelf to find his book on Makai's medicinal herbs. He hadn't even thought about the thing in _years_. He wasn't even sure if he still had it. But if he did, it would be mixed in with all the junk he had piled on his bookshelf. Oddly enough, the one thing that should have been easy for him to keep organized was the _only_ thing of his that was a mess.

He started ripping things off the shelves, cringing internally at the mess he was making all across the floor.

Shuuichi, in the mean time, was giggling at the strange, multicolored creatures dancing around before his eyes . . . (AN: Okay, who wants to take a stab at what's wrong with Shuuichi? Anyone?)

Youko glanced over his shoulder at the giggling boy. Well, at least the boy seemed to be having fun, whatever was wrong with him, and he certainly didn't seem to be feeling any pain . . . He turned back around and frowned at the half-empty bookcase. Where the hell was that damned book?! He punched his fist into the wood in frustration.

A large, and rather heavy, leather-bound book fell off the top shelf, bouncing off the top of Youko's head before landing on his foot, making him yelp, and clutch his aching foot.

The old fox started swearing in a way that would make any member of his gang blush, and he was so glad that Shuuichi had no idea what was going on at the moment.

"Inari, what-?" He picked up the heavy book and blew the thick layer of dust off the cover, reading over the faded lettering of the title. "Oh . . ."

Of course, the book that had tried to attack him just _had_ to be the one he was looking for, didn't it?

He started flipping through the pages, absently plotting the death of whoever had had the right idea to make books so heavy. He knew that one of the herbs he'd used in the boy's medicine could have some side effects if it was given to a human, but what were they . . . ?

He finally found the herb's picture and name, letting his gaze scroll down the yellowing page until he got to the fine print at the bottom.

"'Warning: If given to humans, may cause dizziness, hallucinations, and/or a sense of euphoria.' . . . Oops." His eyebrow twitched and he scowled down at the page. "You know, they really ought to put something like that in bold print!" He snapped the book shut and tossed it over his shoulder, not really caring where it landed or what it broke at this point.

Well, that certainly explained why Shuuichi was acting so strangely. He'd made the poor little human high!

Youko looked up at Shuuichi's next round of odd giggling/snorting sounds. His laugh just didn't sound right, the sound coming from the boy's nose instead of his throat. Youko supposed that it probably had something to do with the fact that the boy couldn't speak.

But, moving on from that, now what was he supposed to do? He _was_ going to wash the boy off a bit, but right now that didn't seem like such a good idea. There was no telling how the boy would react in his current state . . .

And of course Kuronue picked that moment to stumble in, half-drunk.

"Hey, Youko . . ." He waved groggily at his friend, a bottle of some unidentified alcohol in his hand.

Youko's ears laid back. "Kuronue, what did you do now?"

"You know that big guy Gin?" (AN: I couldn't think of any other name. Sue me.)

"The fat one that's always drinking?"

"Uh-huh." He stumbled and had to pause to catch himself. "He challenged me to a drinking contest."

Youko frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. "And how did that go?"

"I lost." He glanced over at the loopy human who was currently giggling his head off while staring at nothing. "So what's going on with him?"

"I accidentally put an herb in his medicine that made him, well . . . high."

Kuronue frowned and raised an eyebrow. "Why did you do that?"

Youko glared at him. "Does the term 'accidentally' mean nothing to you?"

"Oh, right . . ." He put a hand to his head. "Oh, I feel dizzy . . ."

Youko sighed. "So get a chair and sit down."

Kuronue pulled two chairs closer to the bookcase and the two demons sat down, Kuronue leaning his head back and stretching his legs out in front of him, Youko sitting backwards with his legs on either side of the chair back. The fox closed his eyes, just enjoying the feeling of being able to stop worrying about Shuuichi for a moment and rest.

"Drink?" He held up the bottle of liquor he'd carried in with him.

Youko opened one eye and stared at him for a moment, thinking it over. He never was much for drinking, and what if he was drunk and Shuuichi needed something? . . . He glanced over at the giggling human. With how much of that herb he'd put in the boy's medicine, he'd be like that for at least the next several hours . . .

He grabbed the bottle from the bat and took a long drink, feeling the liquid burn in his throat. Inari, how could Kuronue stand to drink this stuff? Well, at least he didn't need to worry about getting drunk on it . . . He handed the bottle back and Kuronue did the same, only he actually enjoyed the taste of the drink.

Youko let his eyes drift shut once again, stacking his hands on the chair back and letting his chin rest on top them, sighing contentedly as he felt the tension ease from his body. Well, if nothing else the slight buzz of the alcohol in his body was helping him relax.

After a few moments, Kuronue spoke. "You know something Youko?"

The fox was half-asleep. "Hmn?"

"I think we've both learned something today."

He opened one eye a slit, bringing his arms up to rest under his head. "Oh? Wha's 'at?"

"Well, I learned never to accept a drinking challenge from a man with a beer gut."

"Yeah, and I learned to *yawn* always know all of an herb's side effects before giving it to humans." He closed his eyes again, burrowing his head further into his arms.

The last thing Youko heard before he drifted off to sleep was Shuuichi's cheery giggling, almost as though the boy was trying to emphasize his point.

* * *

Well, there's the next chapter! PLEASE don't ask for a quick update. As of now, I haven't even started the next chapter yet.

I'm sorry, I have no idea where this came from. It was thought of at one in the morning, though, I can tell you that much.

Please review. Thank you.

It's almost my birthday! Yay!

Laterz!


	4. Chapter 4

Hi! I'm back again with the next chapter of Mute!

Standard disclaimers, blah blah blah, the only reason we put these things is so some bored lawyer with no real life doesn't file a lawsuit, I couldn't really care less about anything I just typed, yaddah yaddah yaddah . . . But anyway, all I own are my OCs.

Warnings: Language! (Big fat DUH!) Pink fox chick in a saloon girl outfit, a hatless Kuronue, young Yomi being a total bastard, an almost squished Shuuichi, and a very pissed off Youko. (See? The bad language starts before the story even begins!)

Am I forgetting anything? Don't think so . . .

Oh, right. Believe it or not, it's been less than a day since Youko brought Shuuichi home. What? Well, Youko's den IS his home now . . .

Oh, and if you wanna see a profile for Reini and Sheen, check my profile. They're in there somewhere . . .

One more thing I need to point out. (And yes, to you people that are asking is this relevant, it is.) The dining hall is set up kind of like a cross between a giant ancient cafeteria, a tavern, and a restaurant. I'll let you put that together in your heads, because even I'm having trouble visualizing it . . .

Anywho, on with the fic!

* * *

Mute

Chapter 4

A few hours later, Youko was reorganizing his bookshelf (for about the tenth time in less than two hours). After he was finished, he planned to go sort through some of his treasures (again, for about the tenth time in less than two hours) and then check on Shuuichi (again) . . . And then start the process all over (again).

Basically, he was just trying to keep himself busy until either Shuuichi woke up, or Kuronue randomly popped in (AGAIN).

He finished shuffling the books around the shelves and stepped back to admire his work, finally satisfied with it. (At least for a few minutes until he looked at it the next time . . .) As he made his way to his "treasure room" (I'll leave it up to your imagination.), he began to wonder idly if Shuuichi knew how to read.

That thought had him stopping in his tracks. DID Shuuichi know how to read? He'd have to at least know his letters to be able to use his hand signs, wouldn't he? And he could obviously put them together to make words. But did that mean that he could read written words too? Hm . . . Now that was something to think about . . .

His growling stomach pulled him away from his thoughts. Inari, he was hungry . . . How had he missed that? When was the last time he'd eaten again? . . . Right, it was several days ago. No wonder his stomach felt like it was trying to eat itself.

He thought about what time it must have been. Late, he supposed. He'd brought Shuuichi here early in the morning, and the boy had slept for most of the day, so it had to be late. Well, his men would be eating dinner right about now, and he was going to have to show his face soon before they started thinking he was dead . . . Which was fully possible in his line of work. But would Shuuichi be all right on his own?

He looked over at the sleeping human. The boy hadn't been asleep for very long (he'd fallen asleep while Youko was rearranging the book shelf either the sixth or seventh time), so he might sleep for a few hours . . . Or he might sleep for just a few more minutes. Youko bit his lip while he debated over what to do. He didn't have any more food stashed away in his den, so he'd have to leave at SOME point. But Shuuichi obviously had issues with being left alone (talk about an understatement). He could take the boy with him, but taking an unconscious human into the middle of a group of rowdy, probably drunk demons MIGHT not be the best idea he'd ever had . . . But between himself and Kuronue, they'd probably be able to keep the boy out of harm's way, and they could always enlist the help of some of his more trustworthy men.

And he did need to make sure that his (not so) little band of thieves understood that this human boy was _OFF_ _LIMITS_ to _ALL_ _OF_ _THEM_, and it was probably better to do that sooner rather then later. But still, Shuuichi could be in danger . . .

* * *

(AN: Okay, before I go any further, let's all take a guess at what Youko decided to do. Take Shuuichi with him, or leave him in the den? Well, let's put together what we know. Youko OBSESSES with this kid, he doesn't like the idea of leaving the boy alone, and so far, the only really good decision that he's made was to buy Shuuichi in the first place. So, what did Youko choose to do? Read on to find out, although I'm sure that most if not all of you can probably guess.)

Sorry if this MAJORLY ANNOYING author's note interrupted the flow of the story. (Not really, I'm just saying that.)

* * *

Even half-drunk, the first thing Kuronue thought when he saw Youko come walking into the band of thieves equivalent to a dining hall was, _What the hell is that fox thinking?!_

Unfortunately, he was pretty sure that the rest of the demons around him were having other thoughts about the little human in the fox's arms.

"Hey, Youko!" a very drunk Gin called. "Who's your little friend there?"

Youko ignored him, moving instead to the small table (*cough*booth*cough*) tucked into the far corner of the room that he usually shared with Kuronue. (When he actually left his den to eat.) The bat was already there waiting for him, a near horror-struck expression on his face. He wasn't even able to speak until after the fox had taken his seat.

"Y-youko?" he squeaked.

The fox didn't look up, busy with situating the still unconscious Shuuichi beside him on the bench so that he would slip to the floor. (Think of the seats in a booth in a restaurant, only made of solid wood.) "What, Kuronue?"

"Wh-" His voice trailed off for a moment, then he stood up and yelled, "What the hell?! You can't bring Shuuichi in here!"

"My base, my slave. I can bring him if I want to. Do you think anyone here is going to question that?"

"That isn't what I mean!"

"Please lower your voice. You're making yourself look like a fool."

Kuronue glanced around. It was true. He was attracting quite a bit of attention. Many of the demons within earshot (i.e.* 1.) most of the demons in the room) were staring at him. When he looked back to the fox and his human companion, even the teen was slowly blinking his eyes open to stare at him.

Shuuichi rubbed at his sleepy eyes. What was with all the racket all of a sudden? Good grief, was he EVER going to be able to sleep in peace without being woken up in between?

Kuronue finally retook his seat, leaning forward and hissing to Youko in a very loud whisper, "Do you not realize what this bunch of drunk, and frankly sex-starved, demons will do to him if they can get their hands on him?"

That seemed to snap the boy out of his half-dazed stupor. He made a series of quick motions with his hand, looking at the fox with wide eyes.

Youko smiled at the child after he'd finished making the strange hand signs. "No, Shuuichi, they won't hurt you."

Another quick fluttering of the boy's hand.

"Yes, I'm sure. I won't let them. I promise."

Kuronue's eyebrow twitched. How could he act so calm?! That precious little human of his could end up being ripped to shreds before dinner was over! There were close to three hundred demons besides the fox and himself in this room, not counting the kitchen, and Youko was telling the boy that's he'd protect him?! With what, a fork?! "Youko, don't you understand that any one of the demons in this room would tear that kid limb from limb if they got ahold of him?! And they wouldn't even be trying! Most of them are that desperate for s-"

"Kuronue!" Youko snapped. "Watch your mouth."

Kuronue flinched. The fox never used that tone with him. "But-"

Youko's eyes narrowed. "Enough. This isn't the kind of conversation to be having right now." He glanced pointedly at Shuuichi, who was currently pressed do tightly against Youko's side that he was probably leaving bruises.

Kuronue took the hint. Youko was right. They shouldn't be having this conversation around Shuuichi. But, really, what was the fox thinking?!

"But seriously, Youko, why did you bring him here? Surely you, of all people, realize that it's dangerous."

"Yes, but I have to explain to all these, um-" Youko couldn't think of the right word to use for the bunch of demons. Savages? No. Beasts? Not quite . . . He looked down when he felt a tug on his shirt.

/N-E-A-N-D-E-R-T-H-A-L-S?/

Youko smiled. Yes, Neanderthals is perfect. Thank you, Shuuichi." He looked back up at Kuronue. "I've got to explain to these Neanderthals that he's off limits to all of them."

Shuuichi glanced over at the rowdy demons, some of whom were currently fighting amongst themselves, before tugging on Youko's shirt again.

Youko looked back down at the boy. "What is it, Shuuichi?"

/M-A-Y-B-E * Y-O-U * S-H-O-U-L-D * W-A-I-T * U-N-T-I-L * T-H-E-Y-R-E * S-O-B-E-R./

Youko looked up at his now-drunken band of thieves as well. "Maybe you're right."

"What?" Kuronue asked.

"That maybe I should wait until they're sober to make this little announcement."

Kuronue looked up in time to see Gin smash a rather heavy chair over another demon's head. "Uh, good idea."

They were all still staring at the chaos going on in the middle of the room when a pink fox girl in a tavern wench's outfit (again, I'll leave it to your imagination) came bounding up, tail swishing happily.

"Hey, Youko!" she chirped. "Hey, Kuronue!" Finally her eyes landed on the little redhead. "Well, hey there." She looked back up at Youko. "Who's this?"

"His name is Shuuichi."

"Is he a new slave?"

"Mm-hm."

"Aaawww, he's cuuute. Covered in dirt, but cute." She leaned down to get a better look at him.

Shuuichi leaned back when he found the girl's breasts in his face. Good grief, why couldn't she wear something that actually fit? (AN: Yes, he's a boy, and no, I don't know why he's complaining. But don't forget that Youko had him high a few hours ago, so maybe he just can't think straight right now.)

"So where are you from, hon?"

Shuuichi pressed himself closer to Youko.

"What's the matter? I don't bite." (Says the girl with fangs.)

Youko put his arm around the human's trembling shoulders. "Reini, please try to understand. His master's weren't as kind to him as yours were to you. He's been hurt and abused for years. He doesn't trust people very much just yet."

She could already see that just fine. There were scars all over the boy's skin where it showed through the rips in his shirt. The poor thing. He'd been through hell . . .

Reini scooted onto the bench beside Shuuichi, making him cling to Youko. The strange looking girl terrified him. Actually, pretty much EVERYTHING in this room scared him right now. He'd been expecting to wake up tucked into the bed in Youko's den, not in the middle of a bunch of drunken maniacs!

Youko felt Shuuichi's arms tighten around his waist. He looked down from the conversation he'd been having with Kuronue to find Shuuichi's eyes squeezed shut, tears collecting in his lashes. Inari, the poor kid was terrified . . . Well, maybe he could help.

"Shuuichi-?"

All four of them gasped when a rather large demon crashed into their table, his arm almost striking Shuuichi. If he hadn't had himself tucked so tightly beneath Youko's arm, the near unconscious demons' elbow would probably have knocked his head off instead of cracking against Youko's shoulder. Even so, the sudden jolt was enough to knock the breath from his lungs and make him gasp in pain.

Youko heard Shuuichi's quiet gasp. He figured that he himself had taken the worst of the blow, but he still checked the human over. The boy didn't seem to be too worse for wear, maybe some bruises, but nothing serious. But still . . . Seeing his little human almost injured, or worse, made the fox furious. Didn't these stupid bastards have any brains at all in those hollow rocks they called skulls?! His hand curled into a fist. Damn those idiots . . .

Kuronue shoved the heavy demon off the table. Damn it, this stupid creature had dumped his drink all over him. Now he was wet and sticky _and_ he smelled like alcohol. Damned bunch of bests, couldn't control their urge to fight, always causing trouble for people-

He was very surprised when Youko suddenly jumped up on the table, fishing through his hair and extracting one of those strange, red, human world flowers he loved so much. What was it he called them? Roses?

Shuuichi was more than surprised when Youko's warm body was suddenly replaced by cool air. He looked up to find the already tall demon towering over all three of them with some type of strange flower in his hand. He actually jumped, eyes widening, when instead of the flower, the fox had some type of green, thorny whip in his hand. (AN: Now, who here can tell me the name of this whip. You get a (fake) cookie if you can!)

Youko flicked his wrist once, snapping the whip in the air and gaining the attention of every member of his thieving gang who was still conscious enough to move their eyes.

The demons that could still move looked at their leader with mostly happy or cheery expressions, thinking that the fox wanted to join in their fun. That thought died, however, when they met Youko's burning golden eyes.

Kuronue leaned back, away from his friend, his wings pressing against that cold rock wall. Youko didn't usually scare him. He knew the old fox well enough to know that he usually didn't get so upset that he would do anything rash (like attacking his own men). But right now he could almost see the waves of hatred rolling off the fox's trembling body. He'd never seen the kitsune so pissed before.

"Listen up!" Youko's voice silenced the rest of the noise in the room, even the clattering in the kitchen. "Which of you shoved him-" He pointed at the floor before him. "-into our table?"

Nobody answered.

"Well?!"

Again, everyone was silent until someone called, "Why does it matter?"

Youko's gaze shot to where the voice had come from. He already recognized the voice as belonging to that troublesome Yomi. 'It matters because that boy-" Now he pointed at Shuuichi, who was currently trying to hide himself from view behind Reini. (Yeah, that's gonna work . . .) "-was almost kill. If he'd actually been hit, he would have been crushed."

"And again, why does it matter? Human slaves are easy to come by. And it looks like you pulled that one out of the gutter anyway. Really, if you were looking for cheap sex (AN: Why does everybody always assume that?), it probably would have been more sanitary to just stop at a local brothel and-" He fell silent when Youko's whip cracked the air again.

Kuronue watched this exchange with his back still pressed against the wall. Gods, was Yomi insane, or did he just have a death wish? Did he not realize that Youko already didn't like him? He was just digging himself a hole!

Reini was thinking pretty much the same thing . . . And that the human boy next to her really needed a bath. (Poor Shuuichi. He can't catch a break anywhere.)

Shuuichi, on the other hand, was wishing that Youko would quit calling so much attention to him. He wasn't used to being around a lot of people at one time . . . (AN: I'll let you take that however you want . . .) And, quite frankly, he didn't like it. It made him uncomfortable and upset and . . . He started crying. (Again.)

Reini tore her gaze off Youko when Shuuichi started to sniffle. What in the world-?

"Kuronue, why is he crying?"

The bat looked over at Reini and the human in question. "How the hell am I supposed to know?"

Reini tugged on Youko's pant leg until he looked down at her. "Hey, Youko, I think something's wrong with, um . . . Shuuichi."

Youko looked down at the crying human. Oh brother . . . What could possibly be wrong with him now?! The fox sighed. He was starting to feel like an old mother hen with one (very fussy) chick.

"What's the matter, Youko? I thought you were mad at me."

Youko's ears laid back and he glared at the horned demon. Damn it, that had better have been the alcohol making him that bold.

But he didn't have time to worry about that right now. Something had really upset Shuuichi (again).

He squatted down in front of the human, hooking his fingers under the boy's chin and tilting his head up so he could see the boy's face. "What's the matter, Shuuichi?"

/T-O-O * M-A-N-Y * P-E-O-P-L-E./

Well, that he could handle. "All right, just hang on a minute, okay?" He stood back up and looked back to his gang. The demons had started to get rowdy again in the few seconds he'd looked away. (Attention spans of squirrels!) "Hey! Listen up!"

They all looked at him again.

"All of you, finish your dinner and then go straight back to you quarters!" Inari, he _was_ turning into a mother . . .

Someone started to speak up. "But-"

"_Now!_"

They all hurried back to their seats and finished their meals, all the while feeling Youko's smoldering gaze on them.

Reini was very surprised by Youko's behavior. He'd never acted like this before. He was usually fairly calm . . . Kuronue was just wondering when the crazy fox was going to get down off the table.

* * *

After the last of his men had left the room, Youko finally retook his seat beside Shuuichi. The boy was still sniffling (and hiccupping) a little, but it wasn't nearly as bad as before.

Shuuichi buried himself in against Youko's side. The fox put his arm back around the boy, rubbing his back until the child completely stopped sniffling.

"You okay now, Shuuichi?"

He nodded, eyes still wet with tears.

"So what was that all about, anyway?" Reini asked.

"I don't think he does too well around crowds," Kuronue said.

"Well, I can understand that. I mean, if his life has been as bad as Youko says-"

"Reini," Youko interrupted, "why don't you bring us some food?"

"Oh, right. That's what I came over here for! Duh!" She smacked herself on the forehead. "So what do you guys want? Sheen is cooking, so you can have pretty much anything."

While Kuronue rattle off a list of food a mile long, Youko looked down at the half-asleep human beside him. "Are you hungry, Shuuichi?"

He nodded tiredly.

"What do you want to eat?"

He shrugged.

"Well, that doesn't tell me very much, does it?" He brushed his thumb over the boy's lashes, wiping away the cold tears. "Isn't there anything you like?"

Shuuichi shook his head. /I * W-A-S * A-L-W-A-Y-S * T-O-L-D * T-O * J-U-S-T * E-A-T * W-H-A-T * I * W-A-S * G-I-V-E-N * A-N-D * B-E * H-A-P-P-Y * I * E-V-E-N * G-O-T * T-H-A-T * M-U-C-H./

Youko's voice softened. "Well, I'm not going to force you to eat something you don't like, and I'm not going to starve you to death if you don't like your food. You just have to tell me and I'll make sure we get you something you like, okay?"

Shuuichi stared at him. /R-E-A-L-L-Y?/ There was no way . . . The fox couldn't possibly be telling him the truth, could he? Half of the time, the food he was given made him literally made him sick, but he either had to eat it and suffer the consequences, or not eat it and stay hungry for who knows how many days . . . Youko really wasn't going to do that to him?

"Yes, Shuuichi, really. Now, you can't think of anything you like in particular? Nothing?"

He shook his head, wiping at his eyes.

"Any ideas about what he wants yet, Youko?"

"No, not yet . . . Why don't you just bring him a little bit of several things so he can test them and see what he does and doesn't like?" He looked down at Shuuichi again. "That okay with you, kiddo?"

He nodded, a tiny smile turning up the corners of his mouth.

"How 'bout you, Youko?"

"Whatever's fine."

"All right, I'd say we can manage that." With that said, Reini skipped off to the kitchen.

* * *

When Reini brought them their food a while later, Youko noticed that Shuuichi seemed more interested in his chopsticks than he was his meal. The boy was turning them over in his hands, examining them as though he'd never seen chopsticks before. (AN: He hasn't.)

"What's the matter, Shuuichi?"

/W-H-A-T * A-R-E * T-H-E-S-E?/

""Chopsticks."

Shuuichi just stared at him.

"Don't you know what chopsticks are?"

He shook his head.

"Well, you use them to eat with." He picked up a piece of smoked fish to demonstrate. "See?"

Shuuichi tried to imitate the fox, managing to pick up a small piece of meat coated in sticky rice. But these stupid . . . _things_ were not easy to use, and now his hand was starting to shake, so that only made it ten times harder.

Youko watched Shuuichi out of the corned of his eye. The boy was really struggling with his chopsticks. He dropped the little morsel of food twice before resorting to using two hands.

When the fox glanced up at Kuronue, the bat was watching the boy as well.

Youko looked back down at Shuuichi, who was still struggling with the same (now badly squished) piece of meat. He could see that it was starting to slip again, and he could tell that Shuuichi was getting very upset and frustrated. Hell, he might even have been close to another crying fit.

"Shuuichi, do you need help?" Youko offered.

He shook his head, squeezing the chopsticks tighter in an attempt to hold on to the bit of food.

Youko couldn't see that ending well . . .

The rice-covered meat suddenly shot from in between the chopsticks, flying across the table and somehow getting stuck to Kuronue's forehead.

Neither of the demons said anything. Neither of them knew what to say . . .

Shuuichi slid down in his seat, trying (pointlessly) to hide from the bat demon's gaze. The last thing he wanted right now was to make the winged demon angry again, and he had a sinking feeling that he'd done just that . . .

Youko suddenly burst out laughing, arms wrapping around his middle as he leaned forward.

The other two just stared at him.

"All right, Youko. What's so funny?" Okay, was the fox still on an alcohol buzz or something? (AN: See last chapter.)

"You should see yourself!"

Kuronue tried to picture what he must look like in his mind, and then he had to laugh too. He had to admit that he probably did look ridiculous. He looked strange enough without his hat, but now . . . (AN: Sheen took his hat to wash it.)

Shuuichi just stared at the two laughing demons. What was so funny? He should be in trouble, shouldn't he? Wasn't the bat demon angry?

Kuronue finally manage to stop laughing and catch his breath, peeling the bit of food off his forehead. He looked up at Shuuichi, who was currently trying to hide by slipping under the table. "Hey, Shuuichi?"

The boy flinched and squeezed his eyes shut. _Here it comes . . ._

"I'm guessing you probably don't want this back." He held up the bite of food.

Shuuichi opened his eyes to see what the bat was talking about, then shook his head and pulled himself back up.

"Good. I don't blame you." He tossed the food away, letting it join the other mess on the floor.

By now, Youko had finally stopped laughing as well, "Shuuichi, I think that maybe we need to find you something else to eat with."

Shuuichi stared at the chopsticks in his hand, then at his food. Why was this so hard? Youko and Kuronue were making it look easy. He felt silly not being able to use these stupid things.

"Shuuichi, I can have Reini bring you something else to eat with. You don't have to fight with those."

Shuuichi shook his head and poked at his food with one of the sticks, wishing that he didn't fool like such an uneducated fool in front of these two demons . . .

And then he had an idea.

Youko could tell that Shuuichi was up to something when the boy started examining his chopsticks again, pressing the smaller end against his fingertip, as though checking to see how sharp it was. What could the boy possibly be-?

Shuuichi suddenly slammed the stick down into his plate, skewering several bits of various meats and vegetables as he did so.

Youko burst out laughing again while Shuuichi nibbled at his food and Kuronue just stared at his insane friend.

* * *

Oh, thank Inari, this is done! I'm so tired . . .

You know, I was thinking while I was writing "laughing demons" somewhere up there. Is it just me, or would that be a good name for a band?

Please don't ask for a quick update. I need a little break. I'll still be working on this fic, but I do have another one I'm working on as well that I've been neglecting, and I'm having some minor writer's block at the moment. So I need to take a couple of days off from fic writing to rest my brain . . . Please understand.

Please review. It might help my writer's block a little. And I always love to answer any questions you have. But no flames please.

Laterz!


	5. Chapter 5

Hi! I'm sorry for the wait on this. I really needed a break from fan fiction so I could catch up on my schoolwork. I was failing Algebra . . . T.T

But now I'm back with the next chapter of Mute! The first part of this chapter is pretty much for comic relief. After that, it all starts to go downhill. If I can just get this stupid story rolling, it's gonna start getting pretty bad for Shuuichi in just a few chapters . . . (Worse than in this one.) Okay, maybe more than a few. At least I know how the story's going to end, though. I just have to get there! Heh heh . . .

Standard disclaimers. (I don't own.)

Warnings: The characters' rambling thoughts, for one thing. (And boy are they characters . . . Yes, that is a pun.) And, well, ya'll might get seriously pissed at Youko (and me) in this one . . . And I'll go ahead and say it for everybody right now: Poor Shuuichi! . . .

Shuuichi: W-H-Y * D-O * Y-O-U * H-A-T-E * M-E?/

Me: Oh, Shuuichi, honey, I don't hate you! It's just that . . . Well, you in pain is kinda what's pushing this story along at this point, that's all.

Shuuichi: . . . *crawls into corner and cries*

Me: I'm sorry!

I think that's about it . . . Now on with the fic! (Before I get tired of typing it!)

Mute

Chapter 5

(Also know as: Youko needs to stop trying to help!)

"Well, that was a total fiasco," Youko grumbled.

"It could have been worse." Kuronue fell into step beside him. "He could be dead."

Youko looked down at the sleeping human in his arms. Shuuichi had fallen asleep during dinner, the combination of warm food and a full stomach making him too tired to keep his head up. Youko tightened his grip very slightly. Kuronue was right. One wrong move around his gang and Shuuichi would be . . . He couldn't even finish the thought.

"Youko? You okay?"

"Fine."

"You sure? You don't look too good."

"I'm just tired, that's all. I've barely slept in days."

"Just, no wonder you look so rough. You look like something the cat demon dragged in."

Youko glared at him. "Keep talking. We'll see how you look once I've dragged you across half of Makai."

And somehow, he didn't doubt that Youko would do exactly that. "Hey, hey, calm down. I'm just trying to give you a nice version of how horrible you look." He cringed when Youko's eyes narrowed even more. "I'm not helping, am I?"

"No, Kuronue, you're not. I'm very much aware that I look like death warmed over, among other things, all right? Now shut up!"

Kuronue just smiled (making sure that Youko didn't see him of course) and shook his head. Youko was always so irritable when he was sleep deprived. "Just promise me that you'll get some sleep tonight, okay?"

"Yes, mother," Youko grumbled.

Kuronue smiled at Youko's continuous grumbling. Compared to his outburst in the dining hall earlier, this really was kind of funny to watch. In a way, though, he could understand why Youko was so cranky. The fox was tired, angry with Yomi, he hadn't had a bath in at least two or three days, his hair was tangled, and from the looks of it, his tail was full of brambles. Considering just how much Youko obsessed over being clean, it was no surprise that he was so cranky.

Youko only stopped grumbling once they reached his den. The first thing he did, of course, was tuck Shuuichi into bed. (AN: Hey, he has to be a responsible parent, doesn't he?) Te second thing he did was find his brushes, sit down in front of his mirror, and start brushing the knots and tangles out of his hair. (Narcissistic much?)

Kuronue pulled a chair up beside his friend and picked up the other brush. "Need some help?"

Youko snatched the brush out of his hand. "That's not for my hair."

Kuronue frowned. "Then what's it for?"

"For my tail, stupid. And no, I don't want any help." He jerked the brush through his hair again.

Kuronue just rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair. He was almost asleep when he heard Youko yelp. Without even opening his eyes he said, "The brush is caught in your hair, isn't it?"

The fox was quiet for a moment before he growled, "Yes . . ."

Kuronue opened his eyes to find Youko jerking irritably on the on the brush tangled in his hair. He could see silver hairs starting to come loose and separate from the fox's scalp. "Well don't jerk on it, dumbass! You'll leave a bald spot." He started picking strands of silver out of the brush. Jeez, how could such smooth, silky hair have so many freaking knots?

"Ooowww!" Youko yelped. "You're pulling my hair out!

"So hold still."

"OW!"

The commotion the two of them were causing had woken Shuuichi. He lay there staring at the two demons, trying not to giggle. Wonderful. His knew "family" was insane _and_ dysfunctional. But he didn't mind. He was safe with these slightly crazy people. And he was happy. He really did like Youko, and Kuronue, and even that strange, pink demon girl from earlier. The rest of the thieves, however, not so much. But then again, nobody could like everyone they met, could they?

But the band of thieves really troubled him. Especially that horned demon Yomi that had been arguing with Youko. It sure didn't look like he and Youko liked each other very much . . .

And it was so strange. How could Youko act so calm one minute, and then be in a screaming match with someone the next? It just didn't make any sense. Maybe Youko had some kind of a mental issue. With these people, that seemed to be a pretty safe bet . . .

And speaking of the fox, he was currently yelling and swearing a blue streak at his winged friend. Shuuichi had to laugh now. Youko Kurama was famous for being cruel, cold-hearted, and ruthless. But this scene in front of him, Youko with his hair caught in a brush and whimpering like a wounded puppy with Kuronue trying to pull the brush free, could only be cescribed as comical. And it didn't look like Kuronue was actually helping any, either. If anything, the bat seemed to be causing more tangles.

Shuuichi sat up, waiting for Youko or Kuronue to notice him. With a little bit of luck he might be able to free the fox's hair. If Youko would let him help.

Youko saw Shuuichi sit up first. "What's wrong, Shuu-? Ouch! Damn it, Kuronue!" He grabbed the bat's hands and pushed him away. "Stop. Now."

Kuronue stepped back and crossed his arms over his chest, glare boring holes into the back of the fox's skull.

"What's wrong, Shuuichi?" Youko asked, rubbing the back of his head. (AN: That's not from Kuronue's glaring, but it is an interesting coincidence, isn't it?"

/C-A-N * I * H-E-L-P?/

"Hm? Help? With what?"

/Y-O-U-R * H-A-I-R./

A soft whine escaped Youko's throat, to quiet for Shuuichi to here, as he gently touched the back of his neck where the brush was snagged. "Do you think you can untangle it?"

Shuuichi nodded.

Youko and Kuronue glanced at each other for a moment before the fox strode over to the bed and sat down in front of the boy.

Shuuichi started picking at the hair knotted in Youko's fancy looking hairbrush, careful not to pull the soft silver strands. It was obvious that Youko took good care of his hair, and Shuuichi didn't want to anger the fox by pulling any of it out.

Youko kicked his feet against the dirt floor, not really sure what to do at that particular moment. He'd never been good at sitting still. He got twitchy and anxious when he had to sit still. It had irritated his poor mother to death when he was a child. And he had a feeling that it was going to take Shuuichi a while to untangle his hair, if the boy could even manage to untangle it at all . . . Inari, he hoped he wasn't going to have to cut the brush out of his hair. It would take him _forever_ to grow it all back out. And besides, he looked ridiculous with short hair. (He knew that from experience . . .) He couldn't possibly-

He was jerked out of his frantic thoughts when Shuuichi gently ran the freed brush through his hair and down his back. He reached back to touch the nape of his neck, where the huge knot that had snagged the brush had been, only to find it gone, Shuuichi running the brush through his hair with ease. The boy would occasionally hit a small tangle, but the brush never once got stuck. And now that all the knots were gone, the motion was actually very enjoyable . . . Youko closed his eyes and smiled, his ears twitching and his tail flicking happily.

Kuronue frowned at his friend. The stupid old fox was acting like a freaking puppy having its belly scratched. Gods help him if any of his band of thieves ever saw him like this. They'd lose _ALL_ respect for him . . .

And how could Youko be so calm and relaxed around this little human? The fox was never even this relaxed around him, other than when he was half drunk, and they'd been friends for years . . . (AN: Uh-oh, I smell a hint of jealousy there . . .)

_Gods, I sound like some jealous ex-girlfriend,_ he scolded himself. _And Youko HAS always liked it when people brush his hair._ He smiled and shook his head. _Silly fox . . ._

Kuronue opened his eyes again and stared at Youko, who he swore was about to start purring (if foxes could purr, that is). He hoped that Youko wouldn't get too attached to this boy, and he really hoped that the kitsune understood that slaves, especially human slaves, didn't last long in their line of work. Something always seemed to happen to them . . .

After a while, Kuronue decided that it was time for him to go to bed, leaving the fox and the human boy alone in the den.

Youko was almost asleep, Shuuichi still brushing his hair, when the old fox tilted to the side, onto his tail. He jumped and yelped, eyes flying open, when one of the many brambles tangled in the silver fur dug into his backside.

Shuuichi jerked his hands back when Youko yelped, dropping the brush, thinking _he'd_ hurt the fox. He lowered his head and closed his eyes, waiting for the demon to strike him or punish him for whatever injury he'd caused. He knew he could only hurt the kitsune so many times before he was punished. And knew was fairly certain that when the fox _did_ punish him, it was going to hurt. Badly.

Youko was still growling and grumbling under his breath when he heard Shuuichi whimper. He turned to look at the boy, surprised to find him with his head down as though he was waiting for someone to hit him.

"Shuuichi?"

/I'-M * S-O-R-R-Y./

Youko's ears laid back. "Sorry? For what?"

/I * H-U-R-T * Y-O-U./

"What?" Oh, for Inari's sake, what could Shuuichi possibly think he'd done now?

/W-H-E-N * I * W-A-S * B-R-U-S-H-I-N-G * Y-O-U-R * H-A-I-R./

"Wha-? . . . Oh!" Now he understood . . . He laid his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Shuuichi, you didn't hurt me. My tail is full of burs. I sat on one, that's all. It wasn't anything you did."

Shuuichi lifted his head slightly, tears rimming his emerald eyes.

Youko sighed. There was no way this kid was going to last long around the other thieves if he didn't start showing some backbone. If he didn't get eaten by something, he'd probably get torn apart by something else. (Or something would rip him apart and then eat him, but the two were enough to worry about by themselves, let alone together.) He was going to have to toughen this kid up, one way or another . . . This was not going to be easy . . .

"Shuuichi," Youko began, knowing that his voice sounded stern, but also knowing that it need to be.

Shuuichi dropped his head again, not knowing what the fox would say or do, but frightened nonetheless.

"No. Look up," Youko scolded.

Shuuichi lifted his head just a bit.

Youko frowned. "All the way."

He complied, but didn't meet the fox's gaze.

"Shuuichi, look at me."

The boy shook his head.

Youko's ear twitched, his temper rising. How dare this kid not listen! Didn't he realize that he was a _slave_? He was supposed to _listen_ to his masters! (AN: O.o Moodswingy much, Youko?) Yes, the boy was trying to stand up for himself (which _was_ what Youko had wanted), but he was doing it out of fear. That was _not_ going to work.

"Shuuichi, I said _look_ _at_ _me_."

He shook his head again, harder this time. Why was Youko doing this? Why wouldn't he just stop?

"Shuuichi!" Youko snapped, making the boy flinch. He saw the boy's shoulders start to tremble, the first sign that he was going to cry. "Shuuichi, do _not_ cry," he growled.

And of course, Shuuichi's eyes started to water. Why was Youko suddenly acting so cruel? What had he done that made the fox so angry? Youko had said that he hadn't hurt the fox, hadn't he? So why was he being yelled at?

Youko's ears laid back in anger. "Shuuichi, if you cry, you're going to be punished. Do you understand?"

Shuuichi shook his head, tears pouring down his face. No, he didn't understand. Why was Youko so angry with him? What had he done to-?

Before he could even finish the thought, Youko had slapped him. (AN: I'm so sorry, everybody! *bows* Please don't kill me for that!)

Shuuichi toppled sideways and would have fallen off the bed if Youko hadn't grabbed his leg, still careful of his bandaged ankle, and jerked him back. His cheek was burning from Youko's vicious slap, his jaw aching, and he could taste the sharp twang of blood in his mouth. He was almost afraid to move, worried that he would anger Youko more, so he just laid there, body trembling in pain, fear, and the first hints of anger.

Youko glanced between his stinging hand and the deep red patch on Shuuichi's face. _What_ had he just done? He'd never meant to strike the boy! He hadn't even been planning to lay a finger on him. How had he lost his control so fast, and to the point that he'd actually _hurt_ a child? Why had he-? What would make him actually want to hurt Shuuichi?

"Shuuichi?" He inched over to the boy, carefully laying a hand on the child's shoulder.

Shuuichi's eyes snapped open, anger and hurt flashing in the emerald depths as he glared at the fox.

Youko reeled back at the sudden change. This was exactly the attitude Shuuichi needed to learn to survive around the thieves, but he hadn't expected the change to happen this fast.

Shuuichi pushed himself up, shoving Youko away when the fox tried to help him. Damned fox. (AN: O.O!) What the hell was wrong with him?

Youko slowly raised his hand to touch the boy's shoulder. "Shuuichi?"

The boy glared at him. Youko's ears laid back. Okay, he deserved that . . . He took a deep breath. This wasn't going to be easy o explain, but he had to try anyway.

"Shuuichi, please, just listen to me for a minute."

He turned away, scowling at the wall, tears brimming in his emerald eyes.

Youko pressed on anyway. "Shuuichi, I didn't mean to hit you. Really. It just- I-" He stopped. He didn't know how to explain. He'd been being so nice to the boy, and then he'd slapped the kid! He couldn't even explain what had happened to himself, so how was he supposed to explain it to Shuuichi? And even if he could, how could Shuuichi possibly trust him again?

But as Youko stared at him, the boy's anger seemed to be dissipating, the tension slowly seeping out of his thin shoulders until-

Shuuichi suddenly turned and threw himself against Youko's chest, burying his face into the fox's shoulder. He didn't care that Youko had hit him. He just wanted someone to tell him it was all right, and right now, Youko was the only one here.

Me: Okay, kid, you are _WAY_ too forgiving.

Youko: I'll say . . .

Youko was stunned for a moment when Shuuichi's smaller frame collided with his own, bony arms snaking around the fox's waist. Was this boy really _that_ forgiving? (AN: _YES_! Jeez . . .) Youko could feel the boy's tiny body start to tremble. He slipped an arm around Shuuichi, gently rubbing his back as he cried . . .

After a few minutes of sitting like that, Shuuichi seemed to be calming down, to the point where he was starting to fall asleep. Youko gently shook his arm. "Shuuichi?"

The boy shifted so he could look up at the fox, emerald eyes still shining with fresh tears.

Youko's stomach clenched when Shuuichi looked up at him. The boy's face was already starting to bruise, a light purple-blue beginning to form around his left eye and across his cheek . . . And yet, although it must have hurt terribly, there was no anger in the boy's eyes. All the hatred from just moments ago was gone . . . Which only made Youko feel even worse and forget what he was going to say. So instead, he asked, "Why aren't you mad at me?" He almost choked on the next words. "I hurt you . . ."

Shuuichi lowered his head again. /I'-M * U-S-E-D * T-O * P-A-I-N./ He paused for a moment, wondering how much he should divulge. Then he remembered that Youko was his master, not his friend, he figured he should keep going. /M-Y * O-T-H-E-R * M-A-S-T-E-R-S * H-I-T * M-E * A-L-L * T-H-E * T-I-M-E, * N-O * M-A-T-T-E-R * W-H-A-T * I * D-I-D. * T-H-E-Y * A-L-W-A-Y-S * T-H-O-U-G-H-T * I-T * W-A-S * F-U-N-N-Y./ He curled in tighter against Youko's chest. /T-H-E-Y'-D * L-A-U-G-H * A-T * M-E * W-H-E-N * C-R-I-E-D. * I-T * D-I-D-N'-T * M-A-T-T-E-R * T-O * T-H-E-M./ (AN: T.T)

Youko's ears laid back, a strange mix of emotions swirling through him. He hated himself for hitting the little human before him, pitying the child for all the abuse he'd had to suffer through, pissed at Shuuichi's previous owners for mistreating the boy the way they had, and yet through all that, he was also happy. He was happy with himself for buying he boy. Inari, it felt like he was losing it . . . Hell, maybe he was! (AN: Oh, ya think?)

And he still hadn't apologized.

"Shuuichi?"

The boy looked up at him, sniffling and wiping at his eyes.

Youko sighed. Apologizing was not one of his strong points . . .

_Well, here goes nothing, I suppose . . ._

"Shuuichi, I'm sorry. I-" Well, at least he was off to a good start, anyway. "I shouldn't have let my anger get the better of me . . . " He took a deep breath before continuing. "I'm sorry," he said again. "Please, forgive me. You probably hate me, and I can understand that, but-" He was cut off when Shuuichi hugged him, pressing in tighter against his chest. "Does this mean you forgive me, then?"

He nodded slowly. /I-T * W-A-S * M-Y * O-W-N * F-A-U-L-T. * I * S-H-O-U-L-D * H-A-V-E * L-I-S-T-E-N-E-D * T-O * Y-O-U./

"No, Shuuichi, it's not your fault. I shouldn't have hit you." He pushed the boy's bangs out of his eyes. "I'm going to make you a promise right here and now that I will never strike you again, nor will I let anyone ale." _And if I don't may my soul burn in the deepest pits of Hell_, he thought to himself.

Shuuichi looked up at him again. /Y-O-U-K-O?/

"Hm?"

/D-O * Y-O-U * H-A-V-E * A-N-Y-/ He paused, trying to remember Youko's word for it. (see chapter 3.) /-M-E-D-I-C-I-N-E * T-O * M-A-K-E * I-T * S-T-O-P * H-U-R-T-I-N-G?/

"I can make something, but it'll take me a few minutes. Will you be all right for that long?"

Shuuichi nodded. /T-H-A-N-K * Y-O-U./

Youko carefully eased the boy back onto the bed, his chest clenching at how quickly, and badly, Shuuichi's face was bruising. He didn't doubt that the kid was going to have a black eye for a while. He gently touched the boy's cheek, feeling how fevered it was, noticing how Shuuichi's pulse throbbed against his fingertips, and feeling a tidal wave of guilt wash over him all over again. Inari, he had to do something for this kid. (AN: Haven't you done enough yet?)

"Would you like a cool cloth to lay over you cheek while I get some medicine ready?"

Shuuichi nodded.

Youko stood and hurried to get a wet cloth, scolding himself once again for harming the boy in the first place. And what made him feel worse was that Shuuichi had "said" he was _used_ to it. His body was so accustomed to pain and abuse that he was almost totally numb to it. Hadn't anyone ever shown this boy any kind of affection at all?

He walked back into the main room just moments later, wet cloth in hand, to find Shuuichi shifting restlessly and (looking rather uncomfortable) on the bed.

"Shuuichi? What's wrong?"

Shuuichi just looked up at the fox, unsure of how to explain this problem. He'd never really _had_ to explain this problem before. He'd never been this incapcitated, completely unable to get up and walk around, before, but his injured ankles just wouldn't permit him to stand up.

Youko began to worry when Shuuichi didn't answer him. "Shuuichi, what's wrong? It's all right. Whatever it is, you can tell me."

Shuuichi's cheeks started burning pink under the layer of dirt coating his skin. He dropped his head to try to hide it. /B-A-T-H-R-O-O-M./

Youko's ear twitched in confusion. What the-? And then it hit him. _Duh, Youko._ Inari, he really needed to get some sleep (that wasn't brought on by alcohol). "You need to use the bathroom? Is that it?"

Shuuichi nodded. /P-L-E-A-S-E./ (AN: I told you all that liquid was going to catch up with him at some point.)

"Well, that's not a problem. You don't need to be embarrassed." He gently picked up the thin child, letting Shuuichi wrap his fingers into his now-wrinkled white tunic.

TIME SKIP!

(About 10-15 minutes have passes, and Youko has finished making the medicine just so you know. ANd yes, he paid close attention to everything he put in the medicine this time around.)

A little while later (by now Youko had completely lost his inner sense of time and had given up on trying to get it back at the moment), Youko had Shuuichi tucked snuggly into bed and was busy gently rubbly salve into the boy's steadily darkening bruise. Shuuichi kept glancing around the room nervously, like he was expection something to jump out at him at any given moment.

Youko finished with the medicine and wiped his hands on a cloth he'd actually had the forethought to bring. (He certainly wasn't going to wipe his hands on his clothes, no matter how wrinkled or dirty they were. It just wasn't becoming of a kitsune.) He noticed how on edge the boy was. "What's wrong, Shuuichi?" His voice seemed to startle the boy. "You're awfully jumpy. Is something bothering you?" He carefully set the bowl and cloth aside.

Shuuichi shook his head, not meeting the fox's eyes.

"Shuuichi, please don't lie to me. You can tell me what's wrong." His ears laid back as a thought hit him. "Was it something I did? I know that I hurt, but-"

/I-T * I-S-N'-T * Y-O-U./

He brushed the boy's hair out of his face. "So what's wrong?"

Shuuichi looked up at Youko, eyes wide. /I * D-O-N'-T * L-I-K-E * T-H-E * D-A-R-K./

Again, Youko scolded himself. He could see very well in the dark (It came with both the thief and the fox territory.), but Shuuichi obviously couldn't. He _was_ only human. And to someone who'd had his rough life, the dark probably meant some pretty bad things . . . (AN: Do with that what you will.)

Youko fished through his hair until he located a seed for a lantern plant, letting it grow in his hand before sitting on the stand by the bed.

Shuuichi looked around the room again. The plant had cast a strange, yellow-green light around the room, but it had also thrown frightening, evil looking shadows across almost everything. He pulled the blankets up higher until they almost covered his head, sinking farther down into the bed. He squezed his eyes shut in an attempt to hide from whatever creature may have been hiding in those shoadows, even though logic told him there was nothing there.

Youko laid his ears back (again). It seemed he'd only made things worse. (Again.)

"Shuuichi?" He laid down beside the boy, curling a protective arm around his small body through the blankets. "Shuuichi, are you all right?"

He peeked out from under the blankets at the fox. A samll hand slipped out long enough to sign, /S-C-A-R-Y./, before both the eyes and hand disappeared again.

Youko pulled Shuuichi up against his chest, puching the blanket down away from the boy's face before encircling his arms around the boy's tiny frame. "Don't worry. I won't let anything hurt you. I promise."

Shuuichi curledup against him, and Youko began to pet and smooth down the boy's mane of air, humming low in his chest in an attempt to sooth the child. He felt Shuuichi slwoly start to relax unitl his deep, even breathing told the fox he'd finally fallen asleep.

Youko let his own eyes drift closed as well, feeling Shuuichi shift slightly in his arms until the boy's head rested in the crook of his elboy. Inari, he was so tired. He couldn't even remember the last time he'd gotten a full night's sleep. Hell, he was probably too tired to sleep right now anyway . . .

As it turned out, he was wrong. Within less than fve minutes, Youko was asleep as well, snoring very softly (although right in Shuuichi's ear . . .).

Sometimes, Youko really didn't mind being wrong. Not ofter, but sometimes.

Well, there it is. It's a long time in coming, but there it is. Don't expect the next chapter too soon either.

Okay, I know I said I wasn't going to give this Shuuichi an age, but Silver Spirit Fox and I have been talking and we've kinda been going with him being about twelve or thirteen. So . . . there. And again, as Kuronue put it in chapter 2, don't people have any morals at all?

Okay, even though it didn't really come up in this story, I'm kind of surprised that none of you have asked why Youko seems to hear Shuuichi's scream in his head. . . . Although I am also kind of glad no one has asked because I'm still trying to figure that out myself. It just kind of got thrwn into the story as a way to move things along, without much thought on how to explain it . . .

Also, has anyone noticed that Youko has pretty much stopped thinking of Shuuichi as a teenager and always thinks of him as a "kid" or "child". Just wondering.

Random bit of useless info that has nothing to do with this story: There is no proper name for the back of the knee.


	6. Chapter 6

Hello, greetings, salutations, and all that other good stuff too. Sorry I haven't updated in so long, but to make up for it, this is the longest chapter so far! But anyway, I'm back again with chapter . . . What chapter is this again?

Shuuichi: /S-I-X./

Me: Right. Chapter six. Thanks, Shuuichi. Youko, would you like to do the disclaimer?

Youko: No.

Me: *pulls out sledgehammer* Do it anyway.

Youko: *sigh* Foxy owns nothing but her twisted little mind. And she's currently renting that to someone.

Me: *smiles like an idiot*

As for warnings . . . Other than language, I don't think any in this chapter. Except maybe some slight social awkwardness OOCness on Youko's part. Poor Youko . . . He just can't win, can he?

Quick summery of chapter: Kuro and Reini find out that Youko hit Shuuichi, and Shuuichi gets a bath . . . Hopefully not as boring as it sounds.

Quick tidbit of info: Thanks to a reviewer who shall be named at a later date for fear of possibly spoiling the plot, I have finally figured out how to explain Youko being able to hear Shuuichi scream in his head. Thank you to XXXXX! And yes, this is relevent to this chapter, though not in the way you might think.

Surprisingly, I think that's all I have to say. So kick back with a snack and a cold drink and get comfortable because here comes chapter six!

Mute

Chapter 6

When Youko woke up early the next morning, he decided that he'd quite possibly just had the best night's sleep ever. He started to stretch out his long body, until his elbow bumped something hard and he heard a soft grunt. What the . . . ? He turned his head to find that his elbow had just connected with Shuuichi's forehead. Oops . . .

Shuuichi slowly blinked his eyes open. Uhg, what was going on . . . ? He caught a glimpse of someone lying beside him, and needless to say, it startled him. His eyes shot open and he shuffled back until his hand suddenly met air instead of a solid surface and he tumbled backwards.

Youko's arm shot out automatically, wrapping around Shuuichi's thin waist as he fell off the bed. Unfortunately for both of them, though, Shuuichi had already fallen so far back that he pulled Youko off balance. Both of them crashed to the dirt floor, sending up a cloud of dust.

(Youko: I really need to sweep my den . . . The floor is getting a bit dirty.

Me: Your den has a dirt floor, stupid!)

Youko carefully levered himself onto his hands and knees, trying not to put any of his weight on the body below him. He'd landed right on top of Shuuichi, knocking the air out of the smaller male's lungs and temporarily stunning him. His face started to burn when he realized the very compromising position in which he and Shuuichi had landed. He was kneeling over the boy, the child's legs on either side of his hips . . . (AN: O.O . . . Awkward . . .) Shuuichi, though, didn't seem to have realized their position yet . . .

Such was the scene that Reini, Sheen, and Kuronue walked in on.

And, of course, Shuuichi had to pick that moment to regain his senses.

As soon as he saw the position he and Youko were in, he shoved up against the fox's chest, wriggling and squirming until Youko leaned back away from him, letting him twist out from under the large demon.

"Um, Youko-" Kuronue began.

Youko glared at the bat. "Do. Not. Start." He stood and dusted off his knees.

"But-"

"No."

"I was just gonna say-"

"Don't," he warned.

"But I-"

Youko's hand snapped over the bat's mouth. "Zip it. Understand?"

"Mm, 'ir (Yes, sir.)," he mumbled through the fox's palm.

Youko turned his attention to Shuuichi then, picking the boy up and carefully placing him in the center of the bed, as far from the edges as possible. No need to repeat this little incident . . . He glanced over his shoulder at the other three demons when he asked, "So what are you three doing here?"

Sheen, his band of thieves' resident bat/vampire girl, who, Youko noticed for no apparent reason, seemed to be the shortest of all his subordinates, held a tray of food out to him. "You two missed breakfast and lunch," she said, a bit irritated. "We _thought_ you two might be hungry. But if you'd rather hang out in here and make passes at that poor kid," she said, nodding at Shuuichi, "while he starves to death, then we'll understand." She shoved the tray of food into Youko's hands before storming out of the fox's den.

The three other demons just stared after her, not really sure how to break the awkward silence the tiny bat girl had left in her wake.

Shuuichi couldn't do much more than blink at the door the girl had exited through either. He had quite possibly just found something that frightened him more than the rest of the band of thieves.

Meanwhile, in Youko's mind, the fox was busy counting forward twenty-eight days since the last time Sheen had hated his guts for no apparent reason. _Nope, that's next week . . ._

Shuuichi's eyes shifted then to the tray of food in Youko's hands. His mouth watered and his stomach growled just looking at the steam rising from the hot food. But . . . Would Youko be upset with him if he asked for some . . . ? He moved his hand up to touch his bruised cheek, remembering how angry the fox had been last night . . . And he hadn't even done anything, had he?

Kuronue caught the slight movement of Shuuichi's hand from the corner of his eye. He glanced at the boy eyes widening when he saw the human's face. "Good gods, what happened to _him_?"

Youko and Reini both turned to look at him, then at Shuuichi. Reini's jaw dropped when she got a good look at the boy's face.

Youko's ears laid back. Right, he'd almost forgotten about the fact that half of Shuuichi's face was covered in a hand-sized bruise. (AN: Um, how did he forget that?)

Reini sat down beside Shuuichi on the bed, cupping his uninjured cheek with one hand and running the fingertips of the other over the bruise, feeling it throb against her skin. "Oh, you poor baby . . ." She hugged him against her chest, almost smothering the poor boy, and turned to glare at Youko. "What happened?" she demanded.

Youko wasn't quite sure why, but for some reason the pink fox's stern-eyed gaze reminded him of his mother . . . He actually felt like those sapphire eyes were going to burn right through his skull. His tail started to twitch nervously. "Well, you see, there was a little bit of an . . . incident." His tail stopped twitching to curl around his leg and hi fingernail began to fidget nervously with a sharp edge on the serving tray. "I, um . . . slapped him."

Reini jumped up so fast she knocked Shuuichi onto his back. "_You_ did that to him?"

Kuronue looked at his friend in disbelief. "Youko, what the hell happened?"

"Why did you hit him?" Reini swung her arm back just as Shuuichi managed to lever himself back up. He stiffened as the sharp nail on her index finger stopped within an inch of his nose. (AN: Maybe he should have just stayed lying down . . .)

_Why are the both so upset?_ Shuuichi wondered. _He . . . didn't mean it . . ._ He grabbed hold of Reini's arm when she started at Youko, shaking his head furiously when she turned to look at him.

"What?" She stared at the boy in bewilderment. "Aren't you angry with him?"

He kept shaking his head.

"But-"

"The kid's pretty forgiving," Kuronue explained. "I don't think he can hold a grudge."

"Even though he has every right to . . ." Youko mumbled, ears laying back in shame.

"Quit sulking." Kuronue patted his partner's shoulder in reassurance. "He isn't mad at you, and you clearly didn't hurt him too badly since he's not crying again, so what's your problem?"

Youko turned on him and snapped, "My _problem_ is that I even hurt him in the first place, you idiot!" His voice had risen steadily as he spoke so that by the time he'd finished just that one sentence, he was yelling so loudly that it was sure to have hurt Kuronue's ears.

Kuronue flinched at his friend's harsh tone. Jeez, why was Youko so angry? _I guess he's just stressed. That kid's probably a lot of work._

Youko plopped himself down on the bed, sitting the tray of food he'd been holding beside him, and rubbed his temples. Inari, his head was throbbing all of a sudden . . . Couldn't Kuronue comprehend that he was _upset_ about hurting Shuuichi? And now he felt like he was getting a migraine on top of everything else. This day was not starting out well . . .

He jumped when a tiny hand curled over his shoulder. He turned to look down at Shuuichi. The boy was staring at him with deep concern shining in his emerald eyes . . . Youko smiled and ruffled the boy's hair a bit. Kuronue was right about one thing, at least. Shuuichi didn't seem to be mad at him. That did make him feel a little better . . . But damn it, why did this kid have to be so forgiving? That just made him feel even worse than before!

Hey. Makai to Youko. Did you hear me?"

Youko's eyebrow started to twitch. "No, Kuronue, I didn't hear you. What?"

"I said, 'Don't you think the kid needs a bath soon?' He's kinda starting to smell."

Reini brought her heel down on the bat's toes.

"Ouch!" Kuronue yelped. "Damn it, Reini-"

Youko ignored them, picking up the tray of food and handing it to Shuuichi and telling him to eat before heading off to another part of the den.

Shuuichi sat on the bed, watching he fox girl and the bat, nibbling at a strip of crispy meat. (It's BACOOOOOON!) This was really good. That Sheen girl was a great cook . . . He picked up one of the cups on the tray to take a sip, then stopped when he didn't recognize its contents. It wasn't the fruit juice Youko had been giving him. This was white. White kind of drink was white? He sniffed it. It didn't smell like anything he'd ever smelled either. So what-?

"It's milk."

Youko's voice made him jump. He looked up at the fox. /W-H-A-T?/

"Milk. It's good for you. Try it."

Shuuichi looked skeptically down into the cup for a moment before taking a small sip. It didn't really taste _bad_, but he didn't like it. He handed the cup over to Youko.

Youko smiled. "You don't like it?"

Shuuichi shook his head. /N-O-T * R-E-A-L-L-Y./ He wasn't exactly pleased with the taste it had left in his mouth either, actually . . .

"Do you want me to get you some of that fruit juice you like?"

The boy nodded. /P-L-E-A-S-E./

Youko went to get the pitcher of juice, reappearing a moment later to find Reini and Kuronue still screaming at each other and Shuuichi looking very uncomfortable about the whole situation.

Youko sat down on the bed with the boy and poured him some juice. "You okay, Shuuichi?"

/W-H-Y * A-R-E * T-H-E-Y * F-I-G-H-T-I-N-G?/ Shuuichi asked, sipping the juice.

Youko turned to the two demons in question and yelled, "Because they're _idiots_!" before turning back to Shuuichi. "Do you want to go somewhere else to eat?"

Shuuichi nodded.

"Well then, that works out just perfectly. I need to give you a bath anyway, so-"

Shuuichi seemed to shrink back at that idea.

Youko sighed. This was getting old. "Shuuichi, I'm not going to hurt you. I swear."

He knew Youko wouldn't hurt him. But . . .

"Shuuichi? What's wrong?"

Shuuichi shook his head. /N-O-T-H-I-N-G./

Youko's brow furrowed. "Don't give me that, Shuuichi. You're upset about something. Now whatever it is-"

Shuuichi shook his head again. /I'-M * A-L-L * R-I-G-H-T. * R-E-A-L-L-Y./

"You're sure?"

He nodded.

Youko knew he was lying, that was obvious, but he decided not to press the matter. Whatever Shuuichi was upset about, he clearly didn't want to talk about it. If the boy decided to tell him, he'd listen, but he wasn't going to push the kid into possibly revealing something that probably wasn't any of his business anyway. It was probably best if he just left the little squirt alone and enjoyed watching Reini trying to strangle Kuronue . . .

So, once the boy had finished eating, Youko sat the pitcher aside and reached for Shuuichi. He didn't miss how the boy winced when he stretched his arms up, or that the boy didn't seem to be able to lift his right arm as high as his left . . . (AN: Remember this fact! It will come up again soon.) _I have got to take this kid to see a doctor_, Youko thought, scooping the boy into his arms.

Reini and Kuronue never even saw them leave . . .

Shuuichi was used to being locked up in cells and the homes of poor demons, places that didn't necessarily have hot water, so when Youko ducked under a curtain of leaves into a "room" that held a giant underground hot spring, he really didn't know what to do other than blink.

Youko chuckled. "Did you think I made my den so far from our base for no reason? When I was looking for a place to make my den, I found this hot spring. So I expanded the main passage, added some rooms, and voila. Here's my house. I can't believe I almost didn't want to live this far from the others . . . But now, I'm kind of glad I do. aThey're way too roudy when they're drunk."

Shuuichi smiled. The fox was a bit odd, but there seemed to be a method to his madness. Sort of . . .

Youko carefully sat the boy down on the towel he'd laid out earlier when he'd gone to get the juice, smiling when Shuuichi looked up at him in confusion. "I was planning to give you a bath today, one way or another." He picked up another towel and handed it to Shuuichi, telling him, "You can cover up with this if you're too uncomfortable," before turning his back to little human.

Shuuichi just sat there and stared at Yoko's back for a moment before starting to sliding off his shirt. For some reason, he didn't feel quite as jittery as he usually did. Maybe because . . . he knew Youko wasn't going to try to jump him? The fox seemed pretty trustworthy . . . In the middle of thinking all this, though, Shuuichi realized that he had a bit of a problem. With the way Youko had put him down, his feet were tucked behind him. He couldn't move without hurting his ankles. He needed Youko's help . . .

Youko felt Shuuichi tug at his pant leg. He'd been listening to the boy's movements, so he knew that there was no way the boy was undressed yet.

He glanced over his shoulder. "Shuuichi, what's-"

/I * N-E-E-D * H-E-L-P./

"You need help?"

He nodded.

Youko knelt down until he was almost at eye level with the boy. "With what?"

Shuuichi blushed. /T-H-E * W-A-Y * Y-O-U * P-U-T * M-E * D-O-W-N-/ He paused for a moment. /I * C-A-N'-T-./ God, how was he supposed to explain this?

Thankfully, Youko's brain seemed to be functioning a bit better after a night of sleep. "Your clothes?"

Shuuichi nodded.

Youko resituated the boy on the towel, then helped him shimmy out of the rest of his clothes. Shuuichi felt his face start to burn as he wrapped the towel Youko had given him around his waist.

"Shuuichi? What's wrong? You look flushed." He laid the back of his hand against the boy's unbruised cheek. "You're a little fevered . . ."

/I-T'-S * H-O-T * I-N * H-E-R-E./ Shuuichi pointed out.

_And humid_, Youko thought. The steam was nice for a bath, but with clothes on . . . Well, his robes were sticking to his skin and rubbing him in all the _wrong_ places . . . He wanted so badly to take off these damp, sticky clothes, but that would probably have Shuuichi running for the hills . . . He was just going to have to suck it up and deal with it.

Youko pulled a cloth from a bucket of hot water beside the boy and began wiping off the worst of the grime, surprised to find that the skin underneath was so very pale . . . He frowned, though, at how dark the scars marring the child's skin were without the layer of dirt covering them. And . . . some of these looked like . . . stab wounds . . . ? Youko bristled at the very thought. What kind of sick bastard would pull a knife on a child?

And Shuuichi was so tiny, too. Even for a human. He really wasn't much more than four feet six inches of skin and bone. He was almost didn't want to touch the boy for fear of hurting him.

/Y-O-U-K-O?/ Shuuichi waved his hand in front of the fox's face. Why was Youko staring him like that? He had the strangest expression on his face. He almost looked . . . sad. Why did he look so sad?

"Shuuichi?"

Youko's voice made him jump. /W-H-A-T?/

"How did you get these scars?" His fingertips brushed against a scar just below the boy's collarbone that looked like it had been caused by a particularly nasty wound. And a very deep wound if the dark, purplish-red color was anything to go by.

Shuuichi did answer right away. He was trying to think of an answer that wouldn't make the old fox angry.

"Shuuichi, answer me," Youko warned.

/O-N-E * O-F * M-Y * M-A-S-T-E-R-S * W-A-S * D-R-U-N-K. * H-E * G-O-T * M-A-D * A-N-D-/ He stopped. He didn't wnat to think about this . . . And why did Youko even care, anyway? It wasn't like he could do anything about it anyway.

Youko was a bit peeved when Shuuichi wouldn't finish, but he could see that the boy wasn't comfortable with sharing his past just yet, and he was fairly cettain that if he pressured the boy into answering, the only thing he'd end up doing would be making the human cry again. It was probably best if he just dropped the matter right now . . . Maybe he should try small talk instead? He did have some other questions he'd like answered . . .

"Shuuichi, how old are you?"

The question made the boy jump. (Again.) _What the- Whare did that come from?_ /W-H-A-T?/

Youko picked up one of the boy's feet and started unwrapping the bandage around his ankle. "Your age. How old are you?"

/I-/ Come to think of it, he really wasn't sure. /I * H-A-V-E * N-O * I-D-E-A./

Youko frowned at the boy's ankle for a moment. The infection was definitely starting to clear, but the wound itself was still pretty bad. Youko wasn't exactly a doctor, no matter how good he was with medicinal plants, but he was fairly certain that something wasn't right here . . . ANd then he noticed that Shuuichi was waving at him, trying to get his attention.

"What's wrong, Shuuichi?"

/W-H-Y * D-O * Y-O-U * L-O-O-K * S-O * W-O-R-R-I-E-D?/ His eyes started to water. /Y-O-U'-R-E * S-C-A-R-I-N-G * M-E./

"Sorry. I'm just thinking."

/A-B-O-U-T * W-H-A-T?/

Youko sighed. "I'm going to have to take you to see a doctor soon."

Shuuichi just stared at him, obviously confused.

_Oh, don't tell me . . ._ "You don't know what a doctor is, do you?"

Shuuichi shook his head.

Inari, how was this kid still alive? "Well, um . . . I guess a doctor is-"

"Hey, Youko!"

Youko just about jumped out of his skin at Kuronue's sudden appearance. He hadn't even heard the bat coming. "Don't do that! For Inari's sake, Kuronue, how many times do I have to tell you not to sneak up on me. One of these days I'm going to end up killing you before I realize who it is."

"Oh, come on, you wouldn't do that."

"You wanna bet?"

Kuronue started chattering in annoyance at the thought that Youko would attack, but Youko decided to just ignore the irritating bat. That usually made him go away . . . His ear twitched when Kuronue peeked over his shoulder, the other demon's breath ruffled the fine hairs there.

"Damn . . . That looks pretty bad Youko." He nodded at the kid's ankle. "You don't think he'll lose his foot, do you?"

Shuuichi's gaze shot to the bat demon's face. _Wh-what?_

Youko very calmly placed Shuuichi's leg back on the towel and stood up, then, not so calmly, grabbed Kuronue by the ear and dragged him from the room.

Once he was absolutely certain that Shuuichi wouldn't hear them, Youko threw the bat up against the wall and hissed, "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"What are you talking about?"

Youko thumped his friend over the head. "You idiot! 'You don't think he'll lose his foot, do you?' What the hell were you thinking? You can't just walk in and say something like that, you dumbass! Especially not to him! I just finished telling him that he's all right. How do you think he feels now?"

"Well, I-"

Youko's voice was suddenly very quiet when he spoke again. "Kuronue, can I ask you something?"

The fox's sudden calmness worried him. "Uh, sure?"

"Do you have rocks where your brains should be? Or is it just that you speak without thinking?" The fox frowned. "Either way, though, you're still an idiot," he growled to himself.

"I-"

Youko sat down against the oppisite wall. He was a bit winded after his short rant. Very winded, actually. He shouldn't have been this tired, should he? He'd slept well last night, better than he had in ages. So why was he suddenly feeling so exhausted. He hadn't done much more today than carry Shuuichi to the spring to wash, and the boy weighed next to nothing! There was no reason for him to be so tired. Maybe he was just getting old . . .

"You okay, Youko? You don't look so good."

He lifted his head to glare at the bat. "I'm exhausted," he stated, irritation and annoyance ringing in his voice.

"Well, I wonder why. It can't have anything to do with the fact that you've only had about twenty hours of sleep in the past week, now can it?"

"Shut up, Kuronue," Youko grumble. Inari, he felt so light-headed all of a sudden . . .

"Hey, Youko, maybe you should go lay down."

Youko heaved himself up off the floor, steadying himself against the wall. "I have to finish giving Shuuichi his bath-"

"I could-"

"-and I am sure as hell not letting you do it. You've already caused me enough problems for one day."

Kuronue frowned, but decided to just let that one go. Something was clearly wrong with the fox, and it was probably best to stay on his good side when he wasn't feeling well. So he followed his friend in silence back toward the spring . . .

Youko could feel his ears drooping. He knew he looked miserable, not that he felt any better, and he wasn't pleased with the fact. But the odd thing was that his heart was pounding and his adrenalin was rushing. As terrible as he felt, he was totally alert . . .

Alert enough, in fact, that, once he neared the room with the underground spring, his ears picked up the oddest of noises. It sounded like . . . a semi-large animal splashing around rather helplessly in the water. But what-?

_Oh, Inari, no!_ "Shuuichi!" He bolted for the spring room.

THe wall of plants covering the door made an attempt to move out of the fox's way, but most of them still lost the majority of their leaves when Youko plowed through them before they could create an opening for him. Youko slid to a hault beside the towel he'd laid out for Shuuichi, but the boy was gone. The bucket of water was overturned, soaking the ground at the fox's feet, and the towel the boy had used to cover his waist was hanging half in the pool of water. But where was Shuuichi?

"Shuuichi! Where are you?" Youko's eyes scanned the water frantically.

The boy bobbed to the surface and floundered about for just a moment before getting sucked back under.

Without even thinking, Youko jumped in after the boy. Kuronue disentangle himself from the agitated wall plants and burst through the doorway just as Youko pulled himself and Shuuichi out of the water.

"Youko, what-?"

"Get some towels," Youko managed between gasping and coughing up water.

Kuronue obeyed without question. When he returned he asked the foxs, "Should I get Reini and Sheen?" rembering that the two girls had delt with drowning victims before.

Youko nodded and sent him off again.

Kuronue made a bee-line for the kitchen, figuring that the girls would be cleaning up from lunch.

Youko wrapped Shuuichi in a towel and began to frantically rub his arms, pat his back, and shake him, trying anything he thought might rouse the little human. The boy was breathing, but Youko just coulsn't get him to open his eyes.

"Come on, Shuuichi, just open your eyes." He started to shake the small body in his arms a bit harder. "Please, Shuuichi." now his eyes were starting to burn. Must have been water dripping off his bangs . . . He shoved the stands off hair out of his face and went back to trying to wake the little human. But he just didn't seem to be making any progress . . .

And then, so suddely it made Youko jump, Shuuichi coughed, sending a spray of water into Youko's face.

Youko eased the child into a sitting position, supporting his thin body as he coughed. "Are you all right, Shuuichi?" he asked worriedly.

The boy nodded weakly and looked up at him. Y-O-U'-R-E * C-R-Y-I-N-G./

"Wh-what?" _He_ was crying? There was no way-

Shuuichi reached a shaky hand up and wiped at the fox's amber eyes.

Youko did the same, feeling the moisture that kept welling up there. "Oh . . ." For some insane reasoning, he smiled. "I-I guess I am." Then, for some even more insane reason, he started to laugh. He knew it was totally inappropriate for a time like this, espacially considering Shuuichi had nearly drowned just moments ago, but he couldn't help it. He was in too much of a state of shock to do much else . . .

When he finally stopped laughing and had regained his breath, he looked down at Shuuichi, who, amazingly enough, was smiling up at him and was looking surprisingly well considering he'd almost drowned a few minutes ago, and said, "Okay, let's get you dressed, shall we?"

/A-T * L-E-A-S-T * F-A-L-L-I-N-G * I-N * T-H-E * W-A-T-E-R * G-O-T * M-E * C-L-E-A-N./ He paused. /C-L-E-A-N-E-R,/ he ammended after a moment.

Youko laughed again and carefully lefted the boy, carrying him off into another room filled with chests, wardrobes, jewels, gold coins, and an assortment of extravagant pillows and cushions. Everything in here was so beautiful . . . But did Youko _really_ need all this stuff?

Youko's ears laid back at the questioning look the boy was giving him. He laughed nervously. "I guess I'm a little bit of a hoarder . . ."

Shuuichi lifted an eyebrow.

Youko frowned. "All right, all right, I'm definitely a hoarder. Happy now?"

Shuuichi nodded happily.

Youko sighed. The kid was right. He really did have _way_ too much stuff in here . . . But . . . This was the room he kept all his stolen treasure in. He couldn't just throw it all out! . . . But he could probably stand to reorganize some things . . .

Shuuichi's tiny body shuddered in his arms, and Youko began to realize something very important. It was freezing in here!

"S-sweet Inari," Youko grumbled, a shiver shooting up his spine from his tail to his ears. "Why is it so cold down here?"

Shuuichi frowned. /W-E * A-R-E * S-O-A-K-E-D * Y-O-U * K-N-O-W./

"I know that, but it shoulcdn't be this cold unless-"

"Youko . . . !"

His ears pricked. Who in the world-?

Kuronue, Reini, and Sheen suddenly tumbled through the door, landing in a heap at Youko's feet. And they were covered in . . . Snow?

"What-? Is it snowing outside?"

Kuronue stood and brushed the snow off his hat. "Yeah, a freak storm blew in. It's already dumped a couple inches of snow since we came by earlier."

_Well, that explains why it's so damn cold . . ._

Youko sighed. He _hated_ these freak Makai snow storms. They always managed to ruin his plans when he had something important to do. Like taking Shuuichi to see a doctor for example. It was definitely not a good idea to take Shuuichi out in this kind of weather, things were definitely going to get pretty bad if he didn't get the little human some help soon. Real help. Not a plant-controling fox demon's help.

"Um, Youko?" Reini said, pulling Sheen to her feet. "Two things. One, why did you need us here, and two, you should probably get Shuuichi dressed before he gets any sicker.

"You two have saved people who almost drowned before, right? Shuuichi fell in the spring, and . . ."

"Well, he looks fine, except for the fact that he's probably freezing." She looked pointedly at the little boy shivering in the towel. "For Inari's sake, Youko, get some clothes on the poor kid. What are you going to do if he gets frostbite or something?"

"Well, if you three will kindly leave, I'll dress him. All right?" Youko didn't mean for his voice to sound so harsh, but that's still what ended up happening.

The three other demons ducked back under the wall of vines, leaving Youko holding a shivering Shuuichi. Youko laid they boy down on the pile of pillows that was taking up the far corner of the room and started rifling through one of the wardrobes.

Shuuichi snaked a trembling hand out and ran his fingers over the soft material Youko had laid him on. It was so soft . . . And probably very expensive. And it probably wasn't supposed to have soaked, dirty slave boys lying on it, either . . .

Shuuichi shifted until he slid off the pile of cushions to the floor. The ground was cold, and he started shaking rather violently almost immediately. Why was it so cold here? Wasn't that warm room with the hot spring just a hundred or so feet down the hallway?

Youko finally located some clothes that he thought would fit Shuuichi and tucked them under his arm. There was a large pile of discarded and rejected clothing at his feet that he would have to remember to pick up later . . . He turned around to find Shuuichi huddled on the floor, shivering in his towel.

Youko grabbed the boy, holding him tight against his chest in an attempt to warm him. "Shuuichi, how the hell did you end up on the floor?"

Shuuichi was shivering too badly to even attampt an answer.

Youko quickly dressed the boy in the dark green kimono he'd found, then carried him back to the front room and wrapped him in the blankets from the bed. He held the boy against his chest and rubbed his back until he'd his shivering had stopped.

After a few minutes, a very sleepy-eyed Shuuichi slipped his hand out of his cacoon of blankets. / W-H-Y * I-S * I-T * S-O * C-O-L-D?/

"A storm blew in this morning. It's probably dumped half a foot of snow on us by now." Okay, so maybe he _was_ exaggerating just a little . . .

Shuuichi settle in closer to Youko. The fox's body was so warm . . .

Youko smiled when Shuuichi started to doze off. The kid was so sweet . . . He couldn't believe that someone this gentle had survived so many years as a slave, and then to stay so kind . . .

Youko shifted the boy a bit, trying to free a hand so he could straighten the boy's kimono where the layers of blankets were pulling it off his shoulders. He slipped a hand under the blankets, searching for the edge of the silk garment, and instead found the raised ridge of a large scar on the boy's right shoulder.

Youko's ears laid back. How did this kid get a scar like that? He pulled a totally unconscious Shuuichi closer so he could inspect the scar. It stretched from about halfway up his shoulder blade and up over his shoulder before disappearing on the underside of the boy's upper arm. How the _hell_ did something like that happen?

"How in the world . . . ?" he breathed.

Kuronue stuck his head in through the vine door. "H-hey, Y-y-youko, c-can I come b-b-back in now? It's f-f-f-freezing out here."

Youko nodded, pulling the blankets back up to cover Shuuichi's shoulders. The boy seemed to be completely out of it. _No point in freezing him to death._ Youko laid the boy down on the bed, resituatijng the blankets around him. He had things to take care of before tomorrow morning. For one thing, he needed to pack. It didn't matter if there were three feet of snow on the ground, one way or another, he was getting SHuuichi to a doctor. Even if it meant his tail was going to freeze and fall off.

Kuronue approached the fox just as he began gathering his brushes and clothes. "What, going on, Youko?" he asked.

"I'm packing." He dopisited his armload of things on the foot of his bed, careful not to jostle Shuuichi, then turmed and headed down the long hallway leading deeper into his den.

Kuronue followed after the fox. "Why? Are you going somewhere?"

Youko ducked into another room. "Yes. I need to get Shuuichi to a doctor." He started sorting through chests, looking for more clothes that would fit Shuuichi.

Kuronue crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, staring at the kitsune's back. "Hey, Youko, can I ask you something?"

Youko sighed. "What?"

"Why do you care so much about this kid?"

Youko paused. "I don't know, Kuronue," he said quietly. "I can't help it. I just . . . I just get so protective around him . . ."

"And yet you still slapped him."

Youko spun to glare at the bat. "Can you please not bring that up?"

"Okay, okay, sorry . . ." He watched the fox resume his digging around in the chests and wardrobes. He could see how much Youko was wobbling when he tried to take a step, and how his eyes kept drifting closed. "Hey, Youko, why don't you go back to sleep? You've had a long week."

"I'm fine."

"You're exhausted."

"I'm fine."

"Have you seen yourself lately? I thought you were obsessed with how you look."

"Kuronue, please, not now. I have a lot to do before tomorrow. I don't have time for this."

Kuronue sighed again. Youko was just so damn stubborn . . . He was going to end up killing himself if he kept this up. Someone needed to talk some sense into the crazy old fox, but it sure as _hell_ wasn't going to be him. He'd found out the hard way long ago that it is _never_ a good idea to argue with an animal that bites . . . So he left the fox and went to see if that human boy was awake. He might not have been able to understand what the kid was saying, but he could ask him yes or no questions and still find out something. It was better than standing around with nothing to do.

But, unfortunately for Kuronue, the boy was already dead asleep, curled up tight and unmoving in his thick cacoon of blankets. The only sign that there was even a living creaure in there was the slight rise and fall of the blankets as the boy breathed.

Kuronue sighed. _Oh well._ He dragged a chair over to the bed and sat down to stare at the breathing lump of cloth on the bed. He didn't exactly have anything else to do. Reini and Sheen had scurried back to the warmth of the kitchen, and the other thieves were probably passed out in the "dining hall" from drinking, which, in reality, was probably not the worst idea any of them had ever had. At least the alcohol would keep them warm . . .

Kuronue shivered, pulling his wings, pulling his wings until they wrapped around his body. For the love of Makai, why the hell did Youko keep it so damned cold in here? Hadn't he thought about the freezing temperatures of Makai's winter when he dug this stupid place out? He could have at least built a fire pit or _something_ . . .

The bat sighed again. His friend really was a truly brilliant tactician when it came to fighting, but the stupid fox had absolutely _no_ common sense when it cam to housing. For Enma's sake, he lived in a freaking hole in the ground! The only smart thing he'd really done with the place was to put those demon eating attack plants near the front entrance, and even then it had taken them almost eating three of his men before he finally remembered to have the plants memorize his thieving gang's energies so they would stop attacking everyone. And speaking of which, he probably needed to remind the fox to have the plants memorize Shuuichi's energy too.

But, honestly, why was Youko so protective of this kid? The fox knew good and well that human slaves never lived long around here, and this one was a child . . . There was no way he'd last more than a month at the most . . .

"This kid sure does sleep a lot," Kuronue mumbled after a few minutes. "Wonder if he has narcolepsy . . ."

Well, there it is! Chapter six! Finally! This is my "treat" for everyone for Halloween.

Sorry for making you wait so long. I hope the fact that this is the longest chapter yet helps make up for it.

A few quick things.

One, I think we all agree that Kuronue should never have children of his own, and that he seems to have the attention span of a squirrel. And am I the only one who noticed that he was sighing a lot in this chapter?

Two, although I didn't actually say it in this chapter (so I probably never will anywhere else in the story), the reason Shuuichi fell in the hot spring was because he was looking at the water and leaned over too far, or his hand slipped, or something like that. Just go with the fact that he fell in the water and leave it at that.

Three, I'm sure some of you are wondering about why Youko got so tired and weak when Shuuichi was almost drowning. I can't exactly explain that right now, but It will be revealed in an upcoming chapter. So please don't ask just yet!

Summary for the next chapter: Youko and Shuuichi on their way to town. Sorry, that's the best I can do right now. But Shuuichi does learn about snow, so it's sorta cute!

Please review and let me know if I misspelled anything. My computer doesn't always catch things.

Random fact for this chapter: Emu's can't walk backwords . . . Go figure.

Happy Halloween, everyone! Don't eat too much candy!


	7. Chapter 7

Hello there, everyone! It's time once again for another chapter of our favorite story about a certain silver-haired fox and his mute slave! (If there happens to be another story out there with Youko and a mute Shuuichi/Kurama that you like more, however, please tell me so I can change this.)

Reini: Wouldn't that just be awkward?

Sheen: *nods*

Me: . . . Don't you two have thieves to cook for?

Reini: Why did you make us cooks anyway?

Anywho, it's time for the disclaimer!

Disclaimer: I don't own it. It's not mine. It _**NEVER**_ will be. Sad, but true.

Warnings: Other than the usual language, this chapter kind of emphasizes just how little Shuuichi (in this story) really knows. You'll understand when you read it. Maybe.

Okay, just for the record, this chapter didn't quite turn out like I thought it would. I wasn't going to have Youko and Shuuichi make it to town until the next chapter, but the original Chapter 7 and Chapter 8 kind of got shmooshed into one. So . . . Here ya go.

And just a couple more bits of info. There will be a brief cameo appearance by another of my OCs, but you'll probably have to search for him in my profile to figure out who. And also, there's a bit of a surprise coming at the end of this chapter. So brace yourselves.

Mute

Chapter 7

"Are you sure you've got everything you need?" Reini asked.

"Yes." He carefully shifting a bundled up and squirming Shuuichi in his arms. "Food, water, extra clothes, gold . . . I think that's everything."

"Just be careful, Youko," Kuronue warned. "It'll be easy for enemies to track you in all this snow, and it'll be difficult for you to fight and keep and eye on Shuuichi at the same time. Are you sure you can really protect him on your own?"

"I'll be fine, Kuronue. I can handle it." He frowned at the bat. "And you know, you wouldn't have to worry about me if you would just come with me like I asked."

Kuronue looked at the fox incredulously. "In this weather?" As if to emphasize his point, a snowflake floated down to land on his hat. "I don't think so. I plan to hang around here and spend the majority of my days while you're away in your hot springs, thank you very much."

Youko chuckled and shook his head. "Kuronue, what am I going to do with you?"

Kuronue only shrugged before ducking into Youko's den, deciding that he'd rather be inside and on his way o the warmth of the hot springs than out here braving the elements with the rest of these morons.

"You should probably get going soon," Reini said. "The sooner you get there, the better."

Youko nodded. "I know."

After another short minute of conversation, consisting mostly of Reini repeatedly asking Youko if he was sure he had everything he needed, Youko set out toward the nearest town, which just happened to be the same one where he'd purchased Shuuichi. The boy dozed off after a little while, leaving Youko to think about just how much he hated this stupid snow . . .

Youko had been walking for well over an hour, his toes long since numbed from the cold, when Shuuichi started to whine and struggle in his arms. Youko had to stop and kneel down just to keep from dropping the boy. Dear Inari, what was wrong with the boy now?

"Shuuichi?" He started to unwrap the blankets, then immediately wished he hadn't when the boy's elbow connected with his throat. Youko reeled back, landing flat on his butt (and, incidentally, his tail) in the snow. Well, this kid might be small, but _damn_ . . .

Shuuichi finally kicked himself loose and tumbled out of his blanket cocoon, bolting upright when his bare arms touched the cold snow. He glanced around frantically for a moment, dazed and disoriented. Where was he? . . . Outside? Why was it so cold? What-?

He almost jumped out of his skin when someone's arms wrapped around him from behind.

He started to strike at his unknown attacker, until he heard Youko's voice right in his ear.

"Shuuichi! _Enough!_"

Shuuichi froze, his elbow inches from Youko's ribs. He tilted his head back to look at the fox, tears in his eyes.

Youko's voice softened. "It's all right." He smoothed the boy's hair away from his forehead. "Now, what happened? Did something frighten you?"

Shuuichi nodded.

"A nightmare?"

He nodded again.

Youko pulled the boy into his lap, draping the blanket around the boy's shoulders. "Well, it's over now. Nothing's going to hurt you. I promise." He started rubbing the boy's back through the blanket.

Shuuichi wiggled closer, clinging to the fox's shirt. After a few minutes, he looked up at Youko. /W-H-A-T * I-S * T-H-I-S?/

Youko's brow furrowed in confusion. "What's what?"

Shuuichi nodded down at the blanket of white powder around them.

"The snow?"

Shuuichi cocked his head. /S-N-O-E?/

"S-N-O-W, Shuuichi. Not 'e'. But, yes, it's snow. You do know what snow is, don't you?"

Shuuichi shook his head.

"Well, it's . . . It's like frozen rain. You know what rain is?"

Shuuichi nodded, reaching out to touch the soft looking powder. He immediately jerked his hand back upon contact. /I-T'-S * C-O-L-D!/

Youko chuckled. "Of course it's cold. It's frozen." Much like his tail was at the moment . . . He tucked Shuuichi's hand back into the blankets and stood up, heading off toward town again. It was going to take a few days to get there, between carrying Shuuichi and the knee-deep snow. He just hoped he didn't drop kid. He wouldn't be able to find him until the snow melted away if he did.

Shuuichi eventually dozed off to sleep again. (There really wasn't much else for him to do.) Thankfully, there were no more nightmares this time.

When Shuuichi woke up again several hours later, at first all he saw was white. He tried to remember what Youko had called it . . . Snow? . . . But wait . . . Was he lying on his back? Why was this "snow" above him? It was supposed to be on the ground, wasn't it? Or at least, that's what he'd thought, anyway . . .

He heard crunching footsteps nearby, but all he could see was snow. Almost like he was in a bubble of it. And where was Youko-?

The fox suddenly slid in through and unseen opening in the "snow bubble".

"Whew! Sweet Inari, when is this snow going to stop?" He noticed Shuuichi staring at him. "Oh, hey, Shuuichi. You been awake long?"

Shuuichi shook his head. /W-H-E-R-E * A-R-E * W-E?/

"I dug us a shelter out of the snow. (*1.) Surprisingly warm, no?"

Shuuichi nodded. /H-O-W * I-S * I-T * W-A-R-M?/

"I'm not exactly sure. I just know that it works." He handed the boy a strip of dried meat from the supplies Reini and Sheen had packed for them. "Eat."

Shuuichi sat up and took the food, nibbling at the edge. It was tough and chewy, but it tasted good. /W-H-A-T * I-S * T-H-I-S?/

"No clue. You'll have to ask Reini and Sheen when we get back."

/Y-O-U * D-O-N'-T * K-N-O-W * W-H-A-T * I-T * I-S, * B-U-T * W-E'-R-E * S-T-I-L-L * G-O-I-N-G * T-O * E-A-T * I-T?/

Youko chewed at his own strip. "I know those two. They wouldn't give us anything that would poison us."

Well, that was all just fine and dandy, but didn't the fox wonder _what_ he was eating?

But, then again, foxes probably ate just about anything, especially when they lived out in the middle of nowhere like Youko seemed to.

"Hey, is something wrong, Shuuichi?"

Shuuichi shook his head and went back to nibbling at the meat.

Shuuichi was a little surprised at how well he slept that night, though he did wake up a few times when Youko accidentally bumped him in his sleep. It was especially surprising considering he was sleeping inside a snow bank. But it was amazingly warm under here . . .

Youko moved beside him again, rolling onto his other side before snorting and falling back into a dead sleep. Shuuichi smiled at the fox's back.

_Youko snores . . ._

Shuuichi rolled onto his back and stared up at the ceiling of their snow dome. A strange, almost supernatural looking glow shown through the snow . . . Shuuichi pulled the blankets up over his head and clung to Youko's back, terrified that a ghost of some sort of specter was about to come through after them.

Youko yelped and jolted awake when he felt ice-cold fingers latch onto him. He rolled away from them out of reflex, dragging Shuuichi with him until the boy was draped across his stomach.

"Shu-Shuuichi? What in the name of-"

Shuuichi looked up at the ceiling where the strange, glowing light was coming from. /T-H-E-R-E'-S * S-O-M-E-T-H-I-N-G * O-U-T-S-I-D-E./

"Something outside?" Youko asked sleepily, yawning and rubbing his eyes. "What?"

/A * G-H-O-S-T./

"A ghost?" he asked incredulously.

Shuuichi nodded.

"Shuuichi, there are no ghosts in Makai. The dead are all taken to Reikai immediately after their deaths to keep them from causing any more trouble. Parents just say there are ghosts to keep little children from going outside after dark. Now go back to sleep." He tried to push the boy off him, but he wouldn't let go.

/B-U-T * T-H-E-R-E'-S * S-O-M-E-T-H-I-N-G * G-L-O-W-I-N-G * O-U-T-S-I-D-E./ Shuuichi protested.

Youko finally sat up. "It's just the moon."

Shuuichi stared at him blankly.

Youko swore under his breath. The kid was sweet, but he knew absolutely nothing about the outside world . . . He sighed. "You're not going to let me go back to sleep until I show you the moon, are you?"

Shuuichi shook his head.

Youko groaned and pulled the boy along with him as he crawled under the low ceiling, picking him up in his arms once he'd cleared the entrance.

Shuuichi looked around in awe at this strange new world. Everything covered in snow was glistening and glowing white, and there was a big, glowing orb in the sky.

"That's the moon," Youko stated, trying to stifle a yawn. "You can only see it at night, usually." He looked down at the boy. "See how the light makes everything pale glow?"

Shuuichi nodded. It did make pale things glow . . . (Including Youko himself.)

/I-T'-S * P-R-E-T-T-Y./

"Yes, yes, it's very pretty," Youko grumbled, exhaustion making him a little irritable. "Can we go back to bed now?"

Shuuichi thought for a moment. Was that thing going to be shining that brightly for the entire trip? He wasn't sure he'd be able to sleep if it did . . . /D-O-E-S * I-T * A-L-W-A-Y-S * L-O-O-K * L-I-K-E * T-H-A-T?/

"No. The moon goes through phases and it's appearance changes all the time. I'll explain it all later, but for right now, we're going back to bed." With that said, he ducked back into the hollowed out snow bank.

The next two days were relatively uneventful. The only thing even remotely interesting that happened was when some low-class bandits tried to rob them, and they ran off as soon as they recognized Youko. After that brief incident, things fell back into the routine of Youko walking all day, and Shuuichi sleeping most of the time while more snow fell on them, and Youko, frankly, was getting tired of not being able to feel his toes . . .

They finally reached the town early on the morning of they fifth day of traveling. Youko made a beeline for the warmth of the town's bar/inn. (It was a loud place in he late afternoon, but it was warm nonetheless.)

The neko woman tidying up the bar downstairs recognized the pale fox as soon as he stepped through the door. "Youko!"

"Good morning, Sayama."

The neko came running out from behind the counter, sliding to a halt less than three feet in front of the fox. Her words came out in a rush when she spoke. "So, what are you doing here in town? I thought you hated coming to town? It must be pretty important if you came all the way here in all this snow, huh? Or do you need supplies? Are you getting ready for a raid or something-?" Youko didn't doubt that she would have kept right on chattering away and asking him an endless number of questions if she hadn't noticed the bundle in his arms. "Ooooh, what that?"

A very sleepy Shuuichi peeked out from under the blankets to see just who had woken him up.

"Oh, how adorable! Who's this?"

"His name is Shuuichi."

Sayama leaned down to get a better look at the boy. "He's so cuuuute!"

_Why do I suddenly feel like a new puppy?_ Shuuichi thought.

"I brought him here to see the doctor, but we'll need a room for a few days," he said pointedly, trying to distract her so she wouldn't start talking again (or try to steal Shuuichi away).

Sayama snapped to attention. "Okie dokie!"

When she ran off without question to get a key, not asking another tsunami of questions, Youko couldn't help but breath a quiet sigh of relief. His ears, and sanity, were saved. For the moment at least.

Youko let out the most contented sigh when he sank down on the bed. After so many days of walking and so many nights of bedding down on blankets and compacted snow, Youko felt as if he were in heaven . . . Or at least as close to heaven as _he_ was ever going to get.

Shuuichi was stretched out beside the fox, reveling in the feel of the soft blankets and sheets. This was almost as nice as Youko's bed back at his den. Not quite, but almost. But it was comfortable enough that he started to doze off . . . Until Youko jerked him out of his almost dreamland by shaking his shoulder.

"Come on, Shuuichi, you've been sleeping for the past week. It's time to get up."

Shuuichi didn't get a chance to even attempt to protest before Youko had scooped him up again. Shuuichi frowned and pouted at the fox, not at all happy about being pulled out of his almost sleep.

Youko had to bite his tongue to keep from laughing. The look on the boy's face was very similar to on a wet cat might give to someone, that odd look of irritation and annoyance that made a person keep glancing over their shoulder for the next week for fear of retaliation from said feline. Thankfully, though, he didn't have to worry about Shuuichi following him around every corner for a while . . . He just had to worry about the boy trying to strangle him in his sleep. Now _that_ might be funny to see . . .Youko jumped when the boy waved his hand in front of his face. "Whoa, what-?"

/Y-O-U * D-I-D * I-T * A-G-A-I-N./

"Did what?"

/S-P-A-C-E-D * O-U-T. * Y-O-U * A-L-M-O-S-T * W-A-L-K-E-D * I-N-T-O * T-H-E * W-A-L-L./

Youko looked up from the boy to find that there was, in fact, a wall less than four feet in front of him. He sidestepped around it to get out the door. He _had_ to stop spacing out like that. He was going to end up hurting someone . . .

The bar downstairs was already starting to fill with the days customers, though Youko had no idea how people could spend an entire day drinking and still live to brag about it. He'd met most of them over the years, and he knew that they weren't the type to get drunk and get rowdy. However, they _were_ the kind of people that would drink themselves into a stupor before dropping like flies. Half of them would probably be passed out on the floor before he got back . . . Honestly, who was the moron who invented alcohol?

Youko heard Sayama call out a good bye to him as she scurried about the bar. He nodded back at her in acknowledgement before venturing out into the snow.

The streets outside were surprisingly alive, considering how much snow and ice was on the ground. Cold-blooded demons had bundled up in thick coats and were scurrying about, trying to get back to there homes, while other demons (ones with fur) stood around talking amongst themselves, breath steaming out around them, seemingly unphased by the cold.

Youko hurried off to the opposite end of town, hoping that the town's old doctor hadn't moved since his last visit. More snow was starting to fall, and he wanted to be back inside the warm room back at the bar/inn before the weather got any worse . . . Inari, where had all this stupid snow come from? It shouldn't have started snowing for another month, at least.

_I told Kuronue that Makai warming _(*2.) _thing he was talking about was a load of-_

His ears flicked in annoyance as the snow landed on them. "Damn, stupid snow . . . Whose bright idea was it to create the stuff, anyway?"

Shuuichi shrugged. _Youko sure is in a bad mood all of a sudden . . ._

Youko started grumbling under his breath. "If I ever find the creature responsible for inventing snow, I'm gonna-" He cut himself off with a yelp as a snowball smacked into his back. He spun around in time to see a flash of smoky-blue hair disappear around a corner (*3.). He would have chased after the demon if he hadn't already been so cold or in such a hurry. It was probably just some local trouble make anyway. No point in exerting unnecessary energy.

"Hey, Youko!" a gravelly voice called.

Youko went rigid. _So, even after all these years, she still has that effect on me . . ._ (AN: And no, folks, it's not a good effect.)

"Why are you standing out in the cold like an idiot? Get your scrawny ass inside before you catch a cold!"

Youko had to smile to himself. There was no mistaking _that_ voice . . . "I'm glad to see you're still here, Senna," he said as he turned around.

An old demon woman was standing in the doorway of a small building nearby. She wasn't a very big woman, and she definitely showed her age, a rare thing among demons. It was even rumored that she was as old as Makai itself. (Considering that fact that she seemed to know everything about everyone she spoke to, Youko wasn't so sure that that rumor wasn't true.) Most of the residents around here were terrified enough of her to actually be respectful to her (Youko included).

/W-H-O * I-S * T-H-A-T/

"That, Shuuichi, is your doctor."

Shuuichi's gaze shot to the fox's face. He wasn't so sure he like that idea . . .

Youko strode over to her. "Afternoon, Senna."

"So, what have you brought me this time, and it had better not be something stupid."

"It's not." He shifted the human in his arms. "Senna, this is Shuuichi. He's-"

"A human," the woman observed.

Youko nodded. "Yes, he's-"

"A slave."

Youko's ears laid back. "Please stop doing that."

"It's not my fault that all you ever bring me are sickly slaves." She ushered the two of them into the building. "So, what is it this time? Injury, infection, undernourishment, what?"

"All of the above." Youko sat down with Shuuichi on his lap and started unwrapping the boy's ankles. "Mostly this, though. I tried handling things myself, but . . ."

"Say no more." _I wonder how much he's already traumatized the kid._ "First, though, he'll need a bath."

"I gave him a bath." _Sort of._

"And how many days ago was that? Or were you stupid enough to dunk him in the river in his condition?"

Youko frowned before handing Shuuichi off to Senna. He didn't particularly like having his intelligence insulted . . . "Fine then."

Senna pushed the boy back at him. "Well, don't give him to me."

Youko tried to hand him back to her. "But you just said-"

Senna shoved Shuuichi back at him once again. "And you can't carry him? I'm an old woman!"

_Oh, I feel sick . . . Damn it, stop shaking me already!_ God, it was frustrating not being able to talk . . .

Shuuichi wasn't exactly thrilled with how the old woman had handled him while she bathed him. She'd scrubbed most of his skin raw (He was used to rough treatment, but come on!), and the whole time, she'd been "tsk-ing" and shaking her head when she discovered another scar or half-healed cur or bruise. (Well, it wasn't his fault he was a slow healer.) And after all that, he still needed his hair washed.

Youko jumped up from his seat when Senna carried the boy back out to him after his bath. "What the- What did you do? He's as red as a damn lobster!" He practically ripped the boy out of her arms.

"He wouldn't hold still."

/I * C-O-U-L-D-N'-T * H-O-L-D * S-T-I-L-L. * S-H-E * W-A-S * H-U-R-T-I-N-G * M-E./ Shuuichi complained.

The old woman sighed. "Well, I suppose he's right. I'm used to tough, burly demons coming in here to be patched up after a big fight, not little human slave boys that a light breeze would probably snap in half."

"Yeah, well- Wait just a minute! You understood him?"

"Yes. Didn't you?"

"Of course, but-"

"You haven't had him very long, have you?"

"No, but-"

"Well, you need to start learning the rest of his language. He's probably getting sick of spelling everything out for you."

"Well-"

"Follow me."

"I- Okay."

Youko really had no choice but to follow the old woman to a back room. There was much furniture in her (not unlike the other rooms), just a couple of chairs and an old wooden table with . . . Were those bloodstains?

"Just sit him down on the table. I'll be back in a minute."

"B-but . . . He's in a towel, and it's freezing in here. He could get sick. And how am I supposed to know what's been on that table?" Youko protested. Really, though, he was just looking for any excuse he could find not to put Shuuichi down. It seemed like the old woman was starting to scare the boy. (Starting?)

"Then you sit down and hold him. I just need him to sit somewhere I'm not going to have to break my to reach," she growled impatiently before leaving the room.

Youko hopped up onto the table, holding Shuuichi on his lap. The boy had his slim fingers wrapped in his shirt. Youko slid his arm around the boy's waist. "I know she seems scary, but she's really not so bad. My mother used to bring me to see her when I was little."

Shuuichi looked up at him in surprise.

Youko chuckled. "Yes, Shuuichi, I was as little as you once. Littler, even."

Shuuichi found that idea difficult to wrap his head around. Youko towered over most people. Was it really possible that he'd been little once, too? It didn't seem so . . . He couldn't believe it. It didn't seem possible that Youko had been a child once. He couldn't even imagine that.

They sat there in silence for a moment until Youko finally spoke up.

"Shuuichi . . . Do you . . . like staying with me?" he asked awkwardly.

Shuuichi looked up at him in surprise.

"It's all right if you don't. I just . . ." He pushed Shuuichi's bangs off his face to see the partially healed bruise he'd left around the boy's eye. "It seems like all I've managed to do since I bought you is cause you even more pain . . ." Maybe it would have been better if he hadn't bought Shuuichi . . . Even if the boy had died, he was still a good kid. He surely would have had a peaceful afterlife. He definitely deserved it after everything he'd been through.

Shuuichi squeezed the fox's arm. /I * D-O * L-I-K-E * L-I-V-I-N-G * W-I-T-H * Y-O-U, * Y-O-U-K-O. * A-N-D * K-U-R-O-N-U-E * A-N-D * R-E-I-N-I * A-N-D * S-H-E-E-N * T-O-O./ His arms snaked around Youko's torso in a hug.

"You're . . sure?"

Shuuichi tightened his grip and nodded.

Youko petted the boy's hair, trying o smooth down some of the tangles. (He was going to wash and brush is when they got back to their room if it killed him.) Shuuichi's reply had made him feel a little better. He'd been worried that the boy would hate him . . . And he wasn't exactly sure why that thought upset him so much.

Senna reappeared then, mumbling under her breath. She pulled a chair over so she was sitting directly in front of Youko and Shuuichi. "All right, kid, hold still."

_Yeah_, Shuuichi thought. _**That's**__ going to happen_. His grip on Youko's shirt tightened.

Youko leaned down to whisper in the boy's ear. "If you at least try to behave, I'll get you a nice present before we leave town. Okay?"

Shuuichi stared at him A present? He wasn't sure he knew what that was . . . But he didn't get a chance to ask before felt alcohol burn in his wounds.

He immediately stiffened up, and the old demon woman started fussing like an old mother hen when he jerked his foot out of her hand. Youko snapped at her to not yell at him, which only prompted her to yell at the fox. There constant arguing was starting to give him a headache . . .

Okay, it was official. He _hated_ going to the doctor.

Youko was standing with Senna in yet another room in her house/office(/torture chamber), warming his hands around a cup of tea. Shuuichi was now dressed and napping in (yet) another room. He could understand why the boy was so tired. In the last three hours alone, he'd been scrubbed, scraped, poked, prodded, and disinfected, had his blood drawn, and been forced to drink some medicine that smelled absolutely revolting. (He didn't even want to _think_ about how it must have tasted.) And Senna was grinding up herbs to make _more_ medicine for Shuuichi.

Youko fidgeted nervously with his cup, glancing at the little whirring machine next to him (which he swore was staring back at him). Senna had put a vial of Shuuichi's blood in the machine a little while ago, saying she needed to test for something. Youko was a little worried about _what_ she was testing _for_. Could his little human be sicker than he thought?

"Damn it, Senna, just tell me what's wrong with him, already!"

"Watch your tongue, Youko."

"Just tell me what you think is wrong with him."

"Nothing more than the obvious."

"Then what are you testing him for?"

"I'm not testing him _for_ anything. I'm doing it out of curiosity."

"Why?"

"For some reason, his aura is very similar to yours . . . I want to know why, that's all. Nothing more."

"I've hardly left his side for over a week. Wouldn't that-?"

"No."

"But then why-?"

"I have a hunch. Here." She handed Youko a pouch with the ground herbs.

"But what-?"

"Put a pinch of that in his drink three times a day. Understand?"

"Yes." Youko tucked the pouch away. "But what's this hunch of yours?" He took a sip of his tea.

"When was the last time you had intercourse with a human woman?"

"What?" Youko shrieked.

"You heard me." She moved to check the results the little machine was printing out.

Youko thought about it for a moment. "Inari, I don't know . . . Twelve . . . Thirteen years ago maybe? Why?"

"Sit down for this, Youko."

Youko sat down in a nearby chair. "There. Now damn it, tell me already." His mouth started to feel dry, so he took another sip of his tea.

"Well, according to this . . . That little 'human' boy is your son."

Youko almost choked on his tea. "Say what?"

Yes! It's done! It should have been done a month ago, but do to extenuating circumstances, it was not.

*1.) I don't know why, but supposedly snow shelters like this one are very warm inside. I guess it's kind of like an igloo.

*2.) Makai Warming- Makai's version of Global Warming. . . . . What? Makai can't have worldwide ecosystem issues too?

*3.) This is the cameo of my OC I was talking about. Virtual cookies for anyone who can figure out who it is! Hint: It is a boy, and he can only be found on my profile. Also, virtual cookies to anyone who can tell me where Senna and Sayam's names came from. Hint: They are not from the same source.

Also, the "big surprise" (if you can call it that) at the end of this chapter was actually inspired by the reviewer **kuramaxhieiover** back in a review for Chapter 5. It got me thinking that maybe Shuuichi _shouldn't_ be completely human. And so, he became Youko's son. (Remember, this is AU.)

And one last quick note. In earlier chapters, Youko that Shuuichi was a teenager. He has just realized that he is most certainly NOT a teenager. Let's just blame this on the fact that Youko isn't around kids a lot and leave it at that.

Oh, and I apologize for any mistakes/misunderstandings in this chapter. Most of it was typed at two in the morning (or later).

Also, Happy Late Birthday, Silver-chan!

Review please!

Bye!


	8. Mute is Moving to DeviantArt, Guys

Attention to anyone who still actually pays attention to this story! Due to the possible impending deletion of this story if FanFiction goes through with its idea to delete any and all stories with an M rating/sexual themes/strong violence/language, this story will most likely no longer be updated on this site. It will be posted on DeviantArt within the next week or so, with slightly edited and added content.

My DeviantArt account is HallloweenKatt. (Yes, I misspelled Halloween by putting three "L"s in it . . . No, that was not intentional, I am just that terrible of a speller.) If you are not familiar with DeviantaArt, but want to still keep up with this story (I am FINALLY able to continue working on it, after almost two years.), go to .com, go to any picture, click the review box, and type :iconhallloweenkatt: (with the colons) into it, then click Preview. (Do NOT send the comment.) Just click the blue jellyfish icon that pops up. (That's me.)

Sadly, this may just be the last update for this story on this site . . . I hope everyone will find me over on DeviantArt and comment on it there!


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